Assonance
by ovoriel
Summary: AU, Canon Divergence. The one where, when faced with two choices, Sasuke picks the third. FULL SUMMARY INSIDE
1. Prologue

**Full Summary:**

There had been no word of Sasuke since the death of Uchiha Itachi. He hasn't come back to Konoha, hadn't made contact with anyone, and there hadn't been even the flimsiest rumor about the last descendant of the Uchiha clan after the day his vengeance finally found fulfillment.

It has been three years.

At first, when it became clear he wasn't just going to show up at his old village's gates like a lost stray, it was believed he had gone to Akatsuki. After all, one of their members had interfered in his retrieval, reaching him first. When Konoha's hunters arrived, both victor and casualty were already gone. It came as quite the shock to learn he hadn't. Even more that he had, in fact, refused. Just like everyone else, Akatsuki had no news of him. At all.

Now, everyone believed him dead.

Everyone but Naruto.

Or: The one where, when faced with two choices, Sasuke picks the third.

* * *

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto, or some things would have been very different. This is purly a fan-work and no profit is made of it.

* * *

 **Prologue**

The hawk flew through the window and landed directly on the hokage's desk. Tsunade glanced up and, noting the scroll attached to its leg, took it off its harness. She scanned for traps and contamination – not recognizing the bird as their own or Suna's - before unsealing and unraveling the missive.

 _Hokage-sama,_

 _The new Otogakure village would like to extend…_

Reading no further, the fifth hokage dropped the letter in her shock, hollering louder than ever before: "Shizune! Get me Nara! And Yamato! And Anko! And… goddamn it, just get me EVERYONE! … And sake! Lots and lots of sake!"

Gods knew she'll need it. And this time, she had a feeling even Shizune will not begrudge her.


	2. The Letter

**Chapter 1: The Letter**

 _Hokage-sama,_

 _The new Otogakure village would like to extend a hand of peace, as our past interactions have been less than favorable. We hold no ill-will or animosity towards Konohagakure village, and dearly hope your own people may overlook any lingering resentment. These are difficult times, for both Konoha and Oto, and even harder times lay ahead of us yet. The unfortunate attack that had cost us both many good shinobi as well as the esteemed third hokage had been the result of the ambition and malice of a single man who was allowed far too much power and freedom. That man, along with his petty ambitions, has not been an issue for a long time._

 _Orochimaru has been the cause of much suffering and hardship to the people of Oto, as much – if not more so – than to Konoha. As previously stated, we ourselves hold no anger towards Konoha for letting their nukenin go unchecked for so long and do not wish it harm. The sole reason for any past animosity between us has been long removed; any possible remaining traces weeded out. The people of Oto carry no favor or mercy toward the old oppressor and his fanatic followers. Konoha has nothing to fear of us._

 _We are, however, a small village still rebuilding, and in short supply of allies. We are a young village by any count, a home for those no longer familiar with the notion. We are indeed small – but in no way are we helpless. I believe you can imagine the value of our people in strength, talent and knowledge. To those, allow me to add resilience and resourcefulness. All of us have survived through hardships that would have broken most._

 _I believe an alliance can prove beneficial to both of our villages. Konoha itself faces a hard time. The news had reached us, and we send condolences for all those who lost loved ones. We know loss, and it is never easy and always unique – we will not claim to understand. We do, however, possess intel about the meaning behind certain current events, as well as Akatsuki, the other shinobi nations may find interesting. We are also in possession of military strength and civilian support that could aid in your own recovery should an alliance be forthcoming._

 _You may consider this an official invitation to our village to begin talk of a future treaty between us and cessation of any lingering hostilities. Should you choose to accept, know that you may bring with you any guard you choose and of any size – within reason, of course – save for masked or hidden ANBU. I will not allow for unknown assassins among my people. Also know that we expect our proposition to be taken seriously and without attempt at subterfuge or underhanded maneuvering._

 _Take all the time you need to decide, and send the answer back with my hawk. He will be waiting until a choice is made, either way. Hopefully, better times lay ahead for all of us._

 _Taka_

Tsunade put the letter down in front of Nara Shikaku and surveyed the room, her gaze moving from one silent face to the next. Shizune had sure taken her request to get 'everyone' to heart. In addition to the two of them, the small meeting room adjacent to the hokage's office currently contained the elders, Morino Ibiki and what looked like the head of every great clan. Also... Tsunade finally forced her gaze to shift to the person she wished she had the forethought to ask Shizune to **keep away**. As it was, not knowing the reason for all the fuss, the room also contained her future successor.

Looking at Naruto's currently gigantic eyes, Tsunade already knew the outcome of this meeting. But he was holding himself well, and there weren't many who **didn't** openly show their surprise at the moment, so this could be a good thing. While the kid had the peculiar talent to befriend anyone at any given situation, as well as usually manage to persuade them into just about anything, there were – and always will be – times when a leader had to act against his heart for the sake of his people, and choose logic instead. The sooner Naruto learns this the better – both for Konoha and himself. For all that she admires him, the third's inability to do the same had insured her own continued troubles with Danzo, after all.

Danzo, who was not, in fact, present, as Shizune was 'unable to locate him in time'. Tsunade could hug her. Of course, that will likely break the poor girl's bones, so she refrained, if just barely. But Shizune most definitely deserved a prize. _A day off!_ The hokage thought. But... _No, I can't spare her for so long... Half a day then! No... that is still too much._ She bit her lip. _A late start tomorrow. Yes! That's it! A three hour late start, and a pig sitter for the day!_ Satisfied, she finally broke the overlong silence.

"So? What do you all think?"

"Tsunade, you cannot possibly be thinking that this could be legitimate!" Tsunade inwardly bristled at the utter disrespect of the old woman. Wasn't it about time for Koharu to kick the bucket anyway? About a decade or so ago.

But the hokage didn't get the chance to retaliate, Ibiki having surprisingly chosen to speak. "It will be foolish to act – or refrain from acting – without investigating every piece of available information." stated the head of T&I, "The hokage is acting as she damn well should, and any competent leader would do the same."

Koharu verily bristled, stewing in her own rage.

"Ibiki, you of all people should be able to recognize a trap when you see one," Homura was quick to jump to his teammate's defense, "and to the hokage herself, at that! Whoever wrote this, this... Taka... clearly knows of the recent attack by Akatsuki. For all we know he is one of them and this is but another ploy to get to the kyuubi's jinchuriki!"

"Based on what? Sure, they know the village was attacked – probably everyone does, honestly – but they didn't say anything about me at all.

"And besides," Naruto continued before anyone else could jump in, "It is no secret that Orochimaru really **is** dead. Also, until right now, we didn't even know Otogakure still exists."

"We still don't." cautioned Yamanaka Inoichi, "None of our agents reported anything of the like." Then, somewhat reluctantly, he added, "Of course, we hadn't been keeping a very close eye on that front since the snake's death and Akatsuki's rise. Not that it is easy to tell **where** to point the eye with that village, anyway."

"You can't just ignore everything!" Naruto spoke again, this time less calmly, "If we can get **any** ally against Akatsuki that could be huge! And if this person... if Oto really does know what the freaks' end game really is... isn't it worth it to make one trip? And even if we are almost done rebuilding, our stores are still low because we had to put all our funds into making sure everyone has roofs over their heads before winter! If we can get another source of supplies it would be awesome!

"Also, can we really afford the uncertainty right now? If nothing else, we need to go in order to find out if this letter is true or a trap!"

"Most likely, it is a trap," This time it was Hyuuga Hiashi speaking, but before either elder could crack a smirk, he continued, "but knowing a trap is the first step to avoiding it and no shinobi worth their training has ever backed away from danger. Besides, we don't have to play by anyone else's rules. He may deny ANBU entry, but isn't going unnoticed the bulk of their job? He cannot condemn what he has no knowledge of, after all."

Tsunade nodded, taking it all in. Of course, she – and likely everyone else – knew Naruto had other, more personal reasons, to want to visit whatever became of that particular village. He had made no mention of them, though, and she was glad he managed to find and express other, more legitimate reasons. He was learning. He was growing.

And soon enough, she would be able to go back to her beloved gambling dens.

"Shikaku? What do you think?" She asked the strategist.

"I think that we can sit here and argue over a piece of paper all we like – fact remains we don't know anything about the guy, so analyzing it is pointless. There are some small jabs here – like claiming we leave our nukenin 'unchecked' – but the only notes of anger I can detect refer to Orochimaru himself. That could point to a real shift in leadership.

"Of course, that in itself could still indicate a trap. We just don't have any way of knowing without checking on it personally. I agree with Naruto and Hyuuga-sama. I believe it would be in our best interests to play nice, but have ANBU follow a few hours behind. If it is a trap, they can interfere and extract the delegation, and Konoha will deal with everything else. If this treaty is real, though... well, no one can have too many allies. Especially when dealing with more unknowns."

The conference went on for a few hours more, opinions stated and argued, egos and loyalties warring and merging with each other, but as Tsunade had predicted the result was already decided. They will be going to Oto, and see what lay in store for them. The only real question now, was who to send.

* * *

Naruto sat at the counter, idly playing with his ramen under Teuchi's concerned gaze. A week has gone by since the meeting, and his head seemed to be running away from him ever since. He wondered, idly, if everyone was still in shock – or only him.

He could easily guess the answer.

He was as intrigued as everyone, of course. What did the resurgence of Oto mean? To Konoha? To the world at large? And why would they reach out to the one village most antagonistic to them? A new leader had a great impact as well. He could be a blank slate – as he claimed – or another one of Orochimaru's fanatics, carrying on the snake's legacy.

They would never know the answers until they got there.

And yet, none of this was in the forefront of his wondering. Sasuke... His friend had seemingly gone missing for going on three years now. He had killed his brother, and all that was to be found when they finally reached the scene of the battle was rubble, black flames and the Uchiha symbol on a large piece of rock. It was all incredibly dramatic, but not very helpful. And there was no Uchiha in sight.

Ever since that day he had been looking. Business as usual at that point, true, but all of a sudden it felt like he had a plethora of information before. Not so now. Now, there wasn't the slightest rumor as to his movements. Though they knew he had a team, _Don't think about it, Naruto_ , they had no clue as to who they are, so there were no known associates for them to tail, either. He wasn't with Akatsuki and there were no more goals left for him to finish.

Very quickly – or so it appeared to Naruto's eyes – everyone started to believe him dead.

Naruto couldn't explain it logically, but he was sure that if his (still best) friend were to drop dead somewhere, he would have felt it. After all, that is why they were such close friends. They always seemed to communicate best when they weren't talking. So, surely, he would know. Right? Right. Of course he would.

So Naruto kept asking. Any traveler he met, any new place he had been sent to on a mission, he asked. He still had nothing.

He could tell when he started to get on everyone's nerves. It was a familiar - if long unvisited - place, after all. Even his relationship with Sakura had started to strain, at one point. So he stopped talking about it. About him. But he knew he wasn't really fooling anyone. He didn't actually try to, either – Naruto was waiting.

And now, that wait seemed to be nearing its end. Oto... A new village, a new place to ask after a long lost friend and brother. Even if he wasn't there – and Naruto strongly doubted he will be – those people may have known him. Some of them must have, in fact, as these people were once associated with Orochimaru, as well. If nothing else he could learn a bit more about the time in Sasuke's life he himself was not a part of. Perhaps get an inkling of what he would do. Anything.

 _Please? Please let there be something..._

"Naruto-kun!" a sunny yet quiet voice said beside him. Gee, he hadn't even noticed Hinata sitting beside him. He hoped she only just came and hadn't been sitting there waiting for him to notice her. She deserved far more than his distraction.

The smile he gave her, even with the mess in his brain, was large and genuine. She always had this effect on him. "Hinata-chan! Hi! When did you get back from your mission?"

"Last night. I would have come to say 'hi', but..."

"No way! You need to rest! You **did** rest, right?" He'll be damned if he ever treated her wrong. Out of everyone – his acquaintances, his friends, those he considered his family – she was the only one who didn't judge. Oh, no one ever said much beyond 'helpful' suggestions, always with his best interests in mind, but he could see the pity in their eyes. Not in hers, though. Never hers. All he ever saw there was affection, admiration and pride.

He will always strive to be worthy of those. Of her.

She gave him a soft smile, blushing at the show of concern. She never felt inadequate while with him, even if the thought of their relationship still overwhelmed her sometimes. But how wouldn't it? The man she loved her entire life loves her back! As a child, looking at him from behind a tree, she never thought it possible, as much as she had hoped.

She wasn't a fool, of course. She was a Hyuuga, and as such nothing if not observant. She had noted his melancholy, his distraction, and could easily deduce the cause for it. It was the same cause for six years, after all. Hinata was glad that she could give him some good news, even as she already prepared to comfort him when his hopes got bashed again. She didn't hate Sasuke, per se - couldn't without feeling like she was somehow betraying Naruto – but she sure didn't like the effect he had on her boyfriend.

"Anyway, I was just at the hokage's tower. Hokage-sama wanted me to tell you we will be leaving for Oto in a week." Naruto – _of course_ – did not disappoint her. Instantly, he perked up.

"Really? That's great, dattebayo!"

Despite of the council having reached its decision the week before and the message having been sent back to Taka soon after, nothing else had actually been done. It wasn't due to laziness. Ibiki, with Shikaku's support, had suggested they purposely delay the delegation. "Just because we are going to accept, does not mean we should cater to their whims." he had said, "Konoha has to show Oto that we are in no hurry to sign any sort of agreement with them. A show of Konoha's power and superiority in this matter must be made and the sooner the better. Taking our sweet time would be the first step in such a direction."

And so, the proceedings were intentionally delayed, and no date of departure was announced. Until now, that is. "Ne, Hinata-chan, do you know who else is going?"

"Well... hokage-sama, obviously... and you already know that you and I will go... Oh, by the way, if anyone asks or gives you a hard time, just say that hokage-sama thinks it is about time you observe inter-village negotiations less rudimentary than those we have with Suna." _Makes sense_ , thought Naruto, _by now, the meetings with Gaara are formality at best. There isn't much negotiation going on there unless something unexpected happens_. He nodded at Hinata to show he understood and signal for her to continue. "Lets see... oh, Shikamaru and Anko will come as advisors", if anyone should be able to spot Orochimaru's influence it's the intelligence specialist who used to be his student, after all, "and Shino-kun and Kakashi-sensei will be coming as well. I think that that's it."

That was a lot of firepower, actually.

Naruto supposed it made sense, though, considering they had no idea what they will be walking into.

"Awesome! I guess we need to pack, then, dattebayo! And tell Kakashi-sensei we leave a day early!"

"Yep!" Hinata said, giggling at the thought of the chronically-late jonin being subjected to diplomatic conferences.

From there, the conversation moved to more mundane personal matters, and Teuchi smiled as Naruto's empty bowls piled on the table by his side.


	3. Taka

**AN:** A few things about the treatment of canon in this fic: while I tried my best to keep unrelated events as they were (barring the occasional minor shift to fit circumstances), some of you may notice I am treating fillers in a much more fluid way. I will acknowledge or disregard them - or even select parts of them - as I feel best fit the story. So if something feels a little weird - that is likely why. Also, the timeline is more stretched here, things moving at a slower pace because it is just ridiculous to think Akatsuki have been sitting on their asses for years and then suddenly everything happened at once. Also, I needed the extra time for character growth.

I hope you like this first look at Taka and his terrible but honest attempts at diplomacy, and the first inkling as to the shape of my version of Oto. You will get to see more of it in the next chapter.

Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed. I hope you like this!

* * *

 **Chapter 2: Taka**

The journey was not so long, really, as the Land of Rice bordered with the Land of Fire, but it was dreary, and without many settlements in sight – growing fewer still the further they went. Of course, they made their crossing by the valley of the end, and Naruto couldn't help the memories no matter how quickly they passed the statues.

Did he go about everything the wrong way? Was there something else he could have said or done that day that would have changed the outcome? _And why didn't he kill me? Was it really nothing more than a whim?_ He physically shook the thoughts out of his head. There was no point dwelling on the past, no matter how painful. Here and now, there's something important for him to do. What was already finished could no longer be changed, but there was always the opportunity of improvement, of making what you **do** have better.

It was both easier and harder the farther they got. His mind kept switching from thoughts of that day – and their subsequent meeting after it – to the mission ahead, to memories of the teacher who had accompanied him through these very paths.

 _Ero-senin..._ he wondered if there was such a thing as an afterlife. If the old pervert was having a blast with some dead chicks. Maybe he met Naruto's parents up there, told his old student and his wife about the person their son had grown to be? If so, he hoped that they were proud of him. He'll never know until he joined them, but he was sure they forgave him for not being in any hurry to.

Or perhaps there was nothing? For some reason, the thought hurt, so he chose to believe in the former. Yes, Jiraya was definitely visiting hot springs as a ghost, being a peeping-Tom, with none the wiser and no consequence.

He felt a smile tugging on the corner of his lips. _Asshole._

Every village they passed was a bittersweet stab to the heart. It was a year ago, now, that news of Jiraya dying in Ame at the hands of Akatsuki's leader and his own former student had hit them, but it wasn't any less painful. Naruto supposed he was never very good at letting things go. He may not seek vengeance, though he thought he understood it a little better now, but the wound still festered, sneaking up on him at random times. He missed the old man, and wished he had gotten more time to know him.

Now, they were making their way through the forest where the official location of Otogakure "village" had been before. Back then, it was but one of numerous scattered bases, and an abandoned one, at that. There was nothing but traps there. It came as a surprise to learn the new Oto was located in that same spot, and Naruto wondered what to make of it. Now, as was the case back then, they found no sign of life for a long time. The last settlement was some ways behind them, and civilian at that, and none they had passed so far was forthcoming with information regarding their destination. The ANBU were following dutifully some distance behind them, and Naruto hoped they will prove unnecessary, and not be found out.

Naruto looked at their party. Tsunade, of course, was walking at the head of the delegation, leading the way, flanked by Kakashi and Shino, who were acting as guards. For once, his teacher's ever-present smut was not in sight, and he looked more alert and serious than Naruto could remember seeing him on any mission. Shino, he knew, had his bugs out, scouting the surrounding forest for any sign of a village or an ambush.

Hinata, likewise, had her byakugan active and scanning at all times as she walked by his side, behind Tsunade. At the back, Shikamaru was looking as bored as normal, letting out the occasional sigh, and Anko was looking all around, narrow-eyed and suspicious. She, more than any of them, did not like the idea of coming here or of Oto still existing. Her distrust of anything remotely Orochimaru-related seemingly taking religious proportions.

At times, he wondered if she came solely for the chance to say 'I told you so'.

They had been walking like that for some time when something finally happened to break what had become their routine for the past couple of days.

It was Hinata who noticed it, and her gasp was so tiny it nearly went unheard. Nearly. "What is it, Hinata-chan? Do you see something?"

At Naruto's words, the party stopped, turning to look at Hinata. It was only the gravity and importance of the situation that kept the shy girl from blushing at the sudden attention – this is, after all, her job here. "Yes," she said, byakugan straining further, "there's… something… coming this way from up ahead."

"Something?" Tsunade asked, perplexed at the wording.

"Well... I think it's a person... but I can't quite…" before she could finish, however, a figure jumped down from the trees a small distance in front of them.

He – for the build of the figure was clearly male – looked rather fond of the shadow-lurker motif, Naruto thought with some amusement. He wore black pants with black sandals – distinguished only by the bend in the fabric – along with a black sleeveless high-necked shirt and dark kote with even darker patches between the plating, and all that topped by a long black hood, leaving only his chin and mouth visible. Really, the only actual color to the guy was a tiny red eighth note embroidered just over his heart – likely marking him as part of Oto. Needless to say, he looked rather weird and not at all friendly.

Everyone was instantly on guard, but it was the stranger who spoke first. "Hokage-sama, welcome to the new Otogakure village. I am Taka, and I will lead you the rest of the way to the gates. But before we go any farther, I do wish to clarify a few things." His voice was… odd. Deep and clear but somehow wrong in a way they could not quite put a finger on. It was almost lilting, melodic but not, clearly masculine but of an unidentifiable timbre, almost as if something else was interfering, altering it… a concealment jutsu? For his voice?

Why?

Tsunade either didn't notice or ignored the strange possibility for the moment. "Clarify? It is Oto that had asked for this meeting, not Konoha. Or has it all been a farce after all?" the hokage did not have much patience. She had come to this conference already skeptical and suspicious – for good reason – and Taka did not strike her as dumb enough to not be aware of that. And now he was denying her entry? She still did not believe Konoha had much to gain from this "alliance" and it was mostly for Naruto's pestering that she even agreed, as well as to see if this village poses a threat to her own. Rather than putting her at ease, Taka's behavior only heightened that suspicion. For someone trying to make allies of a stronger village his own had attacked unprovoked in the past – he sure did not seem to put in much effort to appeal to them.

Taka gave the smallest of smiles, perhaps guessing her thoughts. He did not seem concerned, nor offended, but merely tilted is head a bit in acknowledgment. "No farce, I assure you. However, it is always best to be aware of the law before one enters another land, is it not? I wish to inform you of matters as they are, as plainly as possible, to avoid any misunderstandings between the people of Oto and your party. I truly **do** hope an agreement can be discussed and reached, but if such an occurrence is not possible, I would rather not waste both of our time."

"Not counting the journey, I assume?" was Anko's low mumble. Taka either didn't hear or chose to ignore her. Tsunade decided to move things along before anything else could be said, Naruto had been looking anxious and barley restrained for a while now. "Fine. 'Clarify', then, so we can get on with it. I'm still not completely sure I should have come here at all."

"Understandable. After all, Konoha was the very first shinobi village, and has very loyal allies. Even in light of recent events you are hardly weakened, and we only just showed up on your radar. Also, our villages do not have any favorable history – quite the opposite. It is for this very reason, actually, that I feel the need to say this before granting you entry: there will be no plotting against the people of Oto." At that, only Hinata did not raise an eyebrow – for her eyes became so huge both eyebrows got pushed to their limit.

Seeing the hokage about to explode, Taka hurriedly added: "I mean no disrespect, nor to imply that you would. However, none of us who survived Orochimaru", derision practically dripped from the name, "are in any way naive. I know, as do my people, that you do not trust us. That is as it should be – we have yet to give you a reason to. But know this: sound carries in Oto village. Lie to us, conspire against us, plan to betray us or presume to hurt anyone among us – and be sure we will know. **I** will know. And currently, there is but a single true-law in Oto: no intent to harm is to be tolerated. It is by this that we purged Orochimaru's influence from our very soil as well as soul and remain watchful against to this day. I may not be their leader, but I am sworn to the protection of these people who have suffered more than enough already. I do not take it lightly.

"Come for peace and you will be treated with all the respect and courtesy we can spare – both yourself, hokage-sama, and your subordinates. Come to harm any of our number – and you will be dealt with in full, regardless of consequence."

"Give me no reason to attack and I won't. Unlike what you seemingly believe, I do not wish for war."

"And yet war may well be coming – but not from us." Taka shook his head, as if banishing the thought which caused the words. He continued in a stronger voice "However I do know you are a straightforward person and a good leader. Contrary to appearances I do trust you as such – your council, however, is a different matter."

"Smart." The mumble came from Kakashi who was… reading his book? Thankfully the hood was more than enough to hide Taka's own eye roll, as Tsunade and her escort did not have the means.

"You say that you are not Oto's leader." Shikamaru finally spoke up, "Who is then? You stated no title in the message you sent hokage-sama, either, but it is not usual for an official's letter to not be signed by the name of said official, even inscribed. And yet, it is just as unusual for a village leader to personally greet dignitaries outside the gates."

"As expected of a Nara, you are rather astute. Oto has no official leader. Though I am the closest to such position, I am in no way above these people, nor do I wish to control them. I aid where I can for as long as such aid is desired, and – as previously stated – I am sworn to their protection. That is all."

Tsunade clicked her tongue, clearly unimpressed, as Shikamaru pondered. "Well, are we going to get on with it or not? It **has** been a fairly long journey, after all."

"Of course," said Taka, and then added "but the ANBU squad following about two hours behind you is to remain where it is. Any closer, and they and you will be carefully monitored. Should they come within sight of the gates the guards are authorized to kill. Should they somehow make it past the gate… I will personally deal with them. And I am not much known as a forgiving person." With that said, he turned around and started leading the way toward the location of Oto.

"This is going to be so troublesome…"


	4. Welcome to Oto

**Chapter 3: Welcome to Oto**

They have been following Taka for some time now, Hinata's byakugan activated behind her bangs and Shino's bugs no doubt spread out around them, but there was still no sign of a village. Naruto recognized the area, though, from the time he, Sakura and Jiraya were looking for Sasuke. He remembered the large clearing in the forest, the great mountain that ran across it. And yet, the air was so different.

All around them, the forest made itself known with the scent of pine and the sound of cicadas and bird song. Even the wind itself sounded like a melody. The whole place felt like tranquility and life, where he remembered terror and death.

They had just crossed through the trees and into the clearing, when Taka spoke: "Welcome to Oto." Naruto, bursting with questions as well as anxiety already, was about to explode and yell that there was nothing here, not noticing Hinata and Shino's amazed expressions, but then Taka touched one of the trees to activate (or was it deactivate?) a hidden seal. The large gates that suddenly jumped at them were not unlike those of their home, but there appeared to be no sign of the "guards" Taka had previously mentioned, and they were wide open.

"An auditory genjutsu, huh?" Kakashi mused, and it was only now that Naruto noticed the sound of the wind – while melodious and clear still – had become somewhat fainter, less noticeable. There were other sounds as well, every-day people-sounds that hadn't been there only a minute ago.

"Well, this **is** the village hidden in sound." The mild amusement of the smirk did nothing to hide the pride in the voice, but then, perhaps it was never meant to.

Lost in thought, he did not notice the redheaded woman until she spoke. "Taka, Tsuki just got back. She said she needs to speak with you."

"I understand." There was something… troubled in the masked voice. "Karin, can you please show our guests to their lodgings? And answer what questions they may have?"

"Obviously. Who else would have? Suigetsu?" she scoffed, and Naruto thought Taka's lips twitched, but then he turned back to them, expression impossible to discern. "I apologize but, as you can see, something pressing has come up. But, Karin will show you around in my stead and make sure you are settled, as you must be tired. Tomorrow, hokage-sama, we can begin the talks. Hopefully a true alliance can be reached. Until then, I must bid you farewell." At Tsunade's nod, he turned and vanished, presumably deeper into the village to speak with Tsuki.

For a short while no one spoke, simply standing at the gate, unsure. Then, Karin claimed their attention. "Well then, I'm Karin. Follow me, hokage-sama, um…" she looked at them, clearly expectant, and Tsunade introduced them: "As you already know, I'm Senju Tsunade, the fifth hokage of Konoha. This is Uzumaki Naruto, my successor and as such future sixth hokage, my advisors for this trip; Nara Shikamaru, Hyuuga Hinata and Mitarashi Anko, and my guards; Hatake Kakashi and Aburame Shino."

The realization suddenly hit Naruto that throughout the whole trek through the forest and his initial asshole "greeting", Taka (the bastard) hadn't bothered to learn any of their names! Something must have shown in his expression, because Karin was rolling her eyes now as she led them inside. "Let me guess… He totally forgot about introductions?" she heaved an exasperate-yet-fond sounding sigh and shrugged, "Well, he's not so bad at running a village, but diplomacy really isn't his strong suit."

Naruto was still a little miffed, ever since the near-threat and rather insulting implications of their first meeting with Taka, and still holding himself back from asking what he **truly** wanted to know. He chose to distract himself by observing his surroundings, the village that wasn't a village when he last visited it, and… well, count him distracted. Whatever he – or any of them – had been expecting, it wasn't **this**.

First of all, there was an actual village made of simple but sturdy wooden houses. Okay, so maybe that wasn't really unexpected, but the open doors, the life evident all around the houses in curious and hopeful eyes looking their way and amiable conversations… it just didn't compute with anything that had any connection to Orochimaru ever. Of the lonely shrine-labyrinth and the ruble it had been reduced to, there was no sign.

Second, everything was so damn **green**. It was like nature felt affronted at being built on, so it said "fuck it" and took over right back. Lush parks and wild groves, uncultured flower beds… they weren't even walking on much of a road but rather the occasional flat stones, laid in the grass to form a half-hearted path. And there were **so** many birds! Uncountable numbers of them; sitting on every available tree-branch, hopping on some of the window seals and flying about, singing their little hearts out for any who would listen.

And the cats… so many frigging cats, just lazing around in the setting sun, looking like they owned the place. The screech of a distant hawk, the bark of a puppy and call of a raven, an errant **bunny** hopping along under their feet… it was like every living creature imaginable had taken residence here, a veritable invasion of the forest outside. From the corner of his eye, he noticed Anko glaring at an errant snake that happened upon their periphery.

What had once been a grave was now the very embodiment of life.

He was in awe. That… that can't possibly be real, can it? No it can't, he reminded himself, forcing his optimism back a bit, that is why Hinata and Shino were here, after all – to find the truth and see what was being purposely hidden. Still, he couldn't help hoping that it was.

"Is this the Government Building?" Naruto followed Anko's eyes. The structure she was referring to was no tower, true, but it definitely appeared to be the highest around. It stuck out among the residences, about as wide as three of them, at least, and five stories high. Somehow, though, it wasn't imposing. The place looked airy, wide-windowed and dotted with open terraces. A fledgling vine could be spotted here and there, the only growing thing that looked intentional rather than natural, clearly intended to make the outside walls more inviting. He had to agree with Anko. This clearly was the most opulent place in Oto, at least so far, so it only stood to reason it would serve for official matters.

They were wrong.

Karin actually **scoffed** at the notion, "No. I don't know if Taka got around to it yet or not, but Oto doesn't have an official government. So why will we have an official government **building**?! Just felt kind of pointless, you know? It would have just stood there, being empty… and our external affairs are usually handled abroad. Congratulations, Konoha, you are officially our first guests." Naruto could feel himself smiling. He liked her. She had **sarcasm** , and was not afraid to use it! Still…

"So… Karin-san… Where will we be holding the talks?"

Her smile was so elated it was borderline mocking. "Where all **internal** affairs are handled: the living-room." They all just stopped and blinked at her. The hell? What do you even **say** to that?!

"So…" Shikamaru was the first to recover, "What **is** this building, then?"

"The library."

"The library?!" He felt just like Anko, really, but now that he was looking closer… the terraces were furnished with comfortable chairs and couches, and the windows… All that natural light was to provide better reading. But it sure was some huge-ass library. Just how many books did they have in there?!

With a twitch of the lips and a wave of her hand, Karin led them on. "When we first started to reorganize, we raided Orochimaru's bases before erasing them. Every scrap of information we found that was harmful – we destroyed. Each one that was personal or clan-secret we left to the consideration of those it pertained to. Everything else, along with any other knowledge we gained later and some fiction literature, is in there. The only thing that isn't is children's books and fairytales. Those are kept elsewhere." Karin tilted her head a moment, as if in thought.

"But… why the surprise? Didn't you see what is inside, Hinata-san?" The girl in question, who had been keeping quiet until now, blushed faintly and started stuttering. Karin gave a light chuckle in response. "Relax. No need to hide your byakugan, Hyuuga. You can look as much and as deep as you want. Actually, we would rather you did. We aren't hiding anything. Well… except for Taka's face, I guess, but that really is more convenience that anything. Some people, when they see him, tend to kind of… um… overreact." Naruto supposed that meant some kind of disfigurement. After all, the effects of the cursed seal may have been amazing but surely not **pretty** , and with his neck hidden as well it was possible…

He was pondering that, as well as the little bits of information thrown around. Words like purge, erase, weed-out… they weren't particularly gentle. Just what did they imply? What happened here during the transition from lab-rats to villagers? And what did it mean that Hinata was allowed to use the byakugan? Was there truly nothing sinister in the works or was it just not of a visible nature? Was it hidden in people's minds alone or was there a trap being sprang they were not expected to overcome? Naruto truly doubted the last one; if they simply vanished it would hardly be a secret who the culprits likely were. But everything else was still plausible…

The far sound of children's laughter broke him from his musings, but it was Hinata who asked first: "Um, Karin-san, is that the orphanage?" the building was rather large – though not as big as the library – surrounded by flowers and a large playground. It was airy, open, and though the windows had bars their shapes were unusual, forming pictures rather than making the place look like a prison. Little children were playing or making crowns of the flowers, older kids watching after them and talking with each other, along with the occasional adult.

"Well… not quite, but close. This place is the Children's House, and while it is where Oto's orphans live, they are not the only ones. Some parents are barely capable of caring for themselves let alone their children, or simply don't trust themselves to, but they love them still. The kids may live here, but the parents visit as much as they can and the children know who they are to them. In addition, at times a parent may get sick or simply be working or on a mission – in such case, if their children have no other caretaker, they are put here for a time. The playground is here, as are the toys and books not currently borrowed by families, and all lessons are conducted here. In short, I guess you can say this is sort of a hybrid orphanage-daycare-school." After a bit, she added, her voice implying a smile they couldn't see, "It was the first structure built."

Naruto was staring at the Children's House, at the clear happiness of the kids and open affection of the adults and teenagers. There were no fences, no harsh scolds… Sure, there were altercations – those were kids on a playground – but someone always interfered before it could escalate and the words, though he couldn't discern them, were gentle. If only… If only he could have had that growing up… There was likely no stigma, either, as orphans and kids whose families were intact essentially lived together.

Karin was looking right at him now, and this time he saw her smile and the sad understanding in her gaze. "All of us, children and adults, are orphans to some degree. Having come from destroyed families or clans, or simply being stolen away by Orochimaru and unable to return… we know what importance family has, especially to a child. So it was important to us to form one for them. Before everything, it was imperative we make sure they never had to feel alone – or at least never feel so again."

He couldn't hold it back anymore. He just couldn't. Tsunade baa-chan would just have to forgive him, but it was all getting to be too much, and he felt he had to ask her… "Say, Karin-san, I was wondering if maybe you know… I mean, I know he left after killing Orochimaru and all, and everyone else thinks he's dead… but… Do you know, maybe? What happened to Sasuke?" Hinata was giving him a sad look, knowing his hurt firsthand, while the rest of his friends looked somewhere between resigned and exasperated with his inability to leave well enough alone, and move on with his life.

Karin looked like she was thinking it over. "Hmm… who knows..? I did work with him in the past…" Before Naruto's hope could rise completely, though, she dashed it: "But we weren't particularly close, then, it was just work." Inexplicably, a mischievous smile slowly took over her expression. "If anyone can be said to have been closest to Uchiha Sasuke, though, it is probably Taka." She nodded to herself, for some reason looking quite elated, "You should ask him."

Naruto felt his resolve hardening again, and gave a sharp nod.

They carried on a while longer, passing through people going about their day or simply relaxing on a bench or in the grass. Naruto felt himself smile but couldn't help it, and seeing a similar expression on Hinata's face – byakugan activated and unhidden – only made it grow. He couldn't help it. The last thing he thought to feel here was peace, but that is exactly what he was feeling.

A short moment later, they arrived at one of the houses and Karin opened the door, gesturing them inside. "I hope this will be to your liking. We normally leave our doors open, but there is a deadbolt inside if you wish to use it. Dinner will be brought to you by someone as well as breakfast, as we wouldn't like to overwhelm you already, but after that you may eat with us if you wish to. Rest well." And with a slight inclining of her head, Karin was gone.


	5. And So it Begins

**AN:** Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed! For any SasuSaku fans out there, I would just like to clarify that this will NOT be a pairing in this story. I hope you will still find enough enjoyment to keep reading it, but if this is all you are looking for I'm afraid you'll be disappointed. Just FYI.

Anyway, this contains the first of a few internal pep-talks that may sho up at times of importance, as well as the first tiny glimpse to the internal dynamics of a healthier Hebi. Hope you like it! ;)

* * *

 **Chapter 4: And So it Begins**

The house they were given was unimpressive, but comfortable. It had four spacious bedrooms, a bathroom as well as an extra, smaller, restroom, a parlor/den area and an open kitchen. It was fully furnished and functional, some cupboards even well stocked, and Tsunade wondered for a moment if they were invading someone's home. A closer look, though, revealed most of the groceries to be water or snacks, the closets were empty, and no personal possessions were to be seen.

Someone's future residence, then, rather than a current one.

As soon as the door closed, they bolted it. It wouldn't do much in the event of an actual attack, true, but then, when it came to shinobi, the same could be said for doors in general. It made them **feel** safer, though, and that was the important part. Almost immediately, Tsunade asked "Well?"

Hinata focused her byakugan a little harder before finally shaking her head, and Shino turned from the beetle he was communicating with to face the hokage. Surprisingly, he was the one to speak first: "My bugs haven't found anything suspicious, but they don't like it here. Reason being that there are too many birds."

Before the tick in Tsunade's eyebrow could develop further, Hinata broke the sudden silence blanketing them. "I didn't see anything to be concerned about, either."

"What about what you said in the woods? When Taka was approaching us? You said you weren't sure he is a person."

Her eyes widened marginally, and she inhaled sharply, but softly, "Oh! It is the hood, I think." At the expectant and interested looks she was getting, Hinata started to elaborate: "From afar, especially when going by chakra patterns, he kind of looked like a blob."

"A blob?" Kakashi inquired, visible eye narrowing slightly.

Hinata nodded and continued "Yes. It was like a shapeless lump of chakra. It was a little blinding, actually. I couldn't look for long. His general shape still looked like a person though, but I couldn't make much out other than general height and build, so…" she actually sounded apologetic!

"Don't worry, Hinata. I think I heard about this." Immediately, all eyes turned to Shikamaru who was currently draped over the longest couch. No one else had even sat down yet, and they hurried to do just that, grateful for the chance to rest their legs, as the Nara deigned to exert the effort required for speech. "So troublesome… Apparently it's a special weave, or special thread, or something like that. Basically, there is chakra mixed into the fabric that creates something like a mirror effect. It can disrupt sensing abilities, dispersing chakra signatures and possibly altering minor characteristics by mixing its own with the wearer's. It makes it so that if something – or in this case someone – was to be hidden under such fabric it would be hard to pinpoint and even more so to identify.

"I guess it is worse for a Hyuuga. Can't be easy to detect individual tenketsu, when you can't even look at the thing for too long."

Tsunade clicked her tongue, "Do you think they could be hiding something else with it, then? That this is the reason they don't mind the use of the byakugan inside the village?"

"No. I mean, they **could** be hiding something, but it wouldn't be invisible. Just like Hinata said, even if there will be no way of knowing exactly what it is, there will be a misplaced shapeless "blob" of chakra to show that there is **something**. Also, why cue us in that they have access to something like that if they want to use it against us?"

"Hinata-chan," Naruto asked, "can you maybe look underground? Are there tunnels or misplaced earth or anything?"

Hinata did, but deactivated her byakugan soon after. "No. There's nothing. Just earth."

Naruto looked troubled, and Tsunade soon noticed. "What is it, brat?"

"It's just… I've been here before, you know? I mean, sure it looked nothing like this, but this was the same spot, I'm certain, dattebayo. And one of Orochimaru's lairs had stood here. It was the only thing that stood here. It collapsed, when Sakura-chan, ero-senin and I escaped… so… where is it? All that rubble… And the underground section of it was massive…"

"Hmm… Karin did say that they 'erased' the bases… So maybe they used doton jutsu to replenish the earth? Maybe other techniques, as well? Considering the kinds of people Orochimaru 'collected', they could be capable of just about anything." Kakashi wondered.

"Hmm… Anko? Have you noticed anything?"

The woman rolled her eyes. "If we were to run into a zombie version of my old sensei, I'm fairly certain we would have all noticed. Still, there are too many snakes here."

Naruto looked baffled, "Not that many… Besides, aren't you, like, the snakes lady?"

The cold glare she sent him made her calm tone more ominous than anything, "One snake is one too many. Besides, I don't use **real** snakes, they're artificial."

Tsunade clapped her hands before things could escalate. "Well, keep your guard up, and keep searching for anything amiss **other** than the local fauna. Since we were given permission, there is no reason to insult our hosts by disregarding it." her smile looked downright evil. "Anyway, we may as well rest for a bit. Let's see what tomorrow is going to throw at us."

Not long after, rooms were assigned, and not long after that there was a knock on the door, food in its wake.

* * *

Karin found him at the tiny office in the house, the open window providing some fresh air. Taka appeared to be cross-referencing some of the more ancient scrolls, studying them closely despite of having them memorized already. His hood was up still, and Karin knew it will stay that way at least until the Konoha delegation felt safe enough for the Hyuuga to peep into less private places.

"Something big?"

"No, just going over some details again. Tsuki saw something that…" he shook his head. "She managed to see an actual sealing. I'm trying to see if I can identify something that looked imperative to it. Find its true purpose." Finally, he closed the scroll and turned to her. "Everything went well?"

"Looks like." She gave a short laugh, "Heh, I think we may have broken the hokage, though. They all looked so gob-smacked, it was hilarious. Seriously though, Sasuke, you need to work on your manners." She put one hand on her hip, the other moving as if to scold a misbehaving child. The forward tilt of his head was as good as an eyebrow-raise, and she chuckled before attaching herself to his person and whispering right in his ear: "Forgot something? You know, just because you recognize them doesn't mean **they** are aware of that." He stiffened, eyes probably going wide and she wished she could have fully seen that. His sigh almost sounded sheepish: "Oops."

"Don't worry, I told them your diplomacy sucks." She changed the subject before he could defend himself: "Anyway, it was nice meeting my cousin. Even if I worried sometimes that his eyes will just fall out of their sockets. Asked me something pretty interesting too."

Her voice was **far** too amused. This, he felt, did not bode well. If only she could see the glare he sent her… The increase of amusement in her smile implied she was perfectly aware of his thoughts. "Apparently," she stated slowly, letting go of him, "he misplaced a friend at Orochimaru's and is still looking for him. Thankfully there were no waterworks, but the puppy-eyes were off the charts."

His sigh was deep and regretful, but also held fond frustration and just the hint of an emerging headache. "Naruto… I wish I could say that's surprising, but…" he exhaled on his next word. "So? What did you tell him?"

She almost pitied him... almost. "Why, the truth, of course! That if anyone knew anything it's you!" she exclaimed happily. Even with the hood down, he looked like he saw a ghost. Now, it was her turn to sigh, and she dropped the act. Her voice was gentle when she explained "Sasuke, you know you will have to reveal yourself to them eventually. Sure, now is not the time, but you can't avoid them forever. You can't avoid **him** , either, he's going to be the next hokage."

A small smile came to his lips at that, "Good.", he whispered.

"What are you so worried about, anyway? He was going to ask you regardless. Just tell him something vague and rip the band-aid off until he finds out the truth."

"Yeah, but he **is** your cousin. He'll keep pestering me now that he knows there is something to pester me about." He was smirking at her. She didn't even care that he was laughing at her, she started to chuckle. "Yep, so heads-up on that!"

* * *

Breakfast had been the same as always – Suigetsu gracing them with his presence only to be a pain, Karin losing her temper much too soon and beating him to a literal puddle on the floor, Juugo being a very welcome oasis of quiet and munching animals, and the rest of the glade's current inhabitants either hiding a smirk or completely ignoring their chaos. If there was any unusual tension, it was from Sasuke himself. His panic may have been a quiet one, but he couldn't help it.

In a way, it was pure stupidity; this was hardly his first time in such a political setting, having participated in negotiations with other villages many times before, some with even less to offer than he did now and less common ground. But never before had so much stood at the balance as it did now, and no previous matter had been as delicate as this.

Despite her joking tone or the main reason for his oversight, Karin had not been lying when she said he sucked at diplomacy. Being of a wild temperament in general, and possessing strong opinions, little patience and an overabundance of pride besides, compromise and empty flattery did not come to him easily. Add to that a village he all but hated, past altercations between their nations, the magnitude of what the success or failure of this endeavor could mean to the world at large in addition to the people of Oto, and Naruto... it almost felt like too much. Almost – because complaining wasn't an option, nor was messing this up.

So he had stressed internally all through the writing of the letter – and he still felt uncertain whether or not it came out right – as well as during the wait for the response, felt his worry growing once it finally came, and firmly locked it away when Karin had finally announced their arrival. In perfect honesty, however, he was actually glad Konoha chose to delay. Oh, he could guess perfectly well the reason for it and even found himself approving despite of being on the receiving end of the ploy, but it did give him some time to deflate. Karin and Juugo had been like a soothing balm, both distracting him and reminding him that there was good around him, now. As did the children and mundane affairs of the village.

Suigetsu, of course, just laughed his ass off any time he perceived signs of Sasuke's tension. Then Karin would punch him, Juugo will shake his head with a sigh, and Sasuke felt better.

But now there was no more waiting. There is so much more resting on the fate of this treaty than the hokage knows; not just the relations between Oto and Konoha, but all major shinobi villages, the medical welfare of Oto's citizens, his village's future, the upcoming battle against Akatsuki and their allies, freedom in its most basic form, and the very survival of the shinobi world.

So yeah, no pressure.

Sasuke heaved one final sigh, sending all lingering doubt and turmoil away with the air he exhaled, and gathered all the documents he will need as well as himself. The first meeting of the day will be starting soon, and he will be ready. There will be posturing, and teeth will clench, and torture would be much more appreciated, but he will get through it in the end with a signed agreement between Oto and Konoha and a new alliance if it killed him.

There could be no other outcome.


	6. First connections

**Chapter 5: First Connections**

Tsunade sat on the sofa with Shikamaru at her side, sipping on a cup of tea. She had been offered sake, but... _Bah! Like I'd let you get me drunk! Still..._ She heaved a sigh in a puff – as if to cool the hot beverage. Shikamaru had not yet touched his own, sprawled deceivingly in his seat half on his back, but paying **very** close attention to the man sitting on the nearby couch. Taka, for his part, was sipping on his own cup - after adding something to it that, had it not been added by the same person drinking, would have appeared rather suspicious to a medic of Tsunade's repute. As it was, it just looked odd.

He seemed to be considering his words, and for a palpable while no one said anything. When Taka did speak, it wasn't what she thought he would say. "I am a little surprised your successor is not present."

"I'm still unsure if there is any benefit to Konoha in this. You have mentioned some things that intrigued me, but if it was nothing but a ploy to get us here I see no reason to prolong the inevitable. He will observe the proceedings if there are any. Otherwise, I would rather he treat this as a vacation." In truth, after his brief "consultation" with Karin, Tsunade considered it unwise to bring him with her. Oh, she had every confidence in his ability to keep any personal questions to a later time, but there was no need to tempt fate. In addition, the reason she gave Taka had not been a lie. She was indeed unsure of the merit of this alliance – even genuine – to Konoha, and Naruto's kind-hearted nature and optimism could pose an opposition in case she deemed it needless. And that would be a major problem.

Taka, for his part, just tilted his head in her direction as if to concede the point and allowed the subject to drop. "Of course. Like I said, I understand your hesitance. We are a small village – you are, perhaps, the largest. We are new – Konoha was the shinobi village to start the shinobi village system. What could you possibly get from us you cannot gain yourselves or from your existing allies?"

After a short pause, Taka continued: "While the attack on Konoha had been a year ago, and most – I'm sure – is already rebuilt," Shikamaru lifted an eyebrow, and finally picked up his cup, showing a modicum of interest. _Knowing of the attack is one thing, but why do you sound so confident of our progress? Coincidence? Assumption? Or are you hinting at something?_ "there is more to such a large scale of destruction than buildings, and a population requires more than lodgings. This may be our first contact with a fellow shinobi village, but Oto does holds close connections with various civilian settlements. Production and agriculture most define this land. We can provide any supplies Konoha may require in reduced rates you will get through no other channels. No debt.

"Also, our own greatest asset is intel, as I mentioned in my letter. While the collection of information is still ongoing, I already know much of Akatsuki, its leaders and its plans to be of more than passing interest to you. Especially considering... well... lets dub it 'personal interests'."

Shikamaru narrowed his eyes at the obvious reference to Naruto, and Tsunade all but hissed though gritted teeth "And what does Oto hope to achieve?"

"Nothing too troublesome, I assure you." he had the gall to be smirking! "As you may have guessed, we suffer no shortage in regards to military, and our economy is beyond stable at this point. But one thing Orochimaru had not been wrong about is the importance of knowledge, and this is what I would ask of you.

"Not", he added, seeing the hokage's ire growing more pronounced and the Nara's eyes more calculating, "in form of the secrets of Konoha or its clans. We have no use for 'unraveling the truth of the world' or any such other bullshit. It's pointless, it's dumb, and beyond despicable. But there are no iryo-nin at all in Oto, and the nearest civilian doctor is in the next town over, which... well..." They knew just how far that distance could prove in a time of crisis. They had made that journey only yesterday.

"You want medics." Tsunade said, with a small amount of wonder, thinking it over."Ultimately, I want capable instructors to teach those that are interested in and are found fit for the profession within Oto's population, yes."

"And that is it?" It truly wasn't much, and as such felt off.

"Eventually I hope to use an alliance with Konoha as a way to reach the other four nations as well, but in essence, yes. You yourself are an iryo-nin of unmatched renown, and I can only assume those you employ reflect that prestige as well. Medics are of extreme importance to this village and not something we can trust to mere book knowledge or trial-and-error."

She had to admit – it made sense. And a shinobi village without a hospital? You did not have to be a genius to see how **that** was a bad idea.

While she was thinking, Shikamaru finally spoke, startling her out of her musings: "You were close to Orochimaru." _That's right... 'Unraveling the truth of the world'... It's almost word-for-word what the old snake used to prattle about. How did I miss this?_

"You could say that, although I never shared his views." Taka didn't seem bothered at all by the deduction. "Understand, that while he did have his fanatic followers worshiping him, most of the people under his control – whether in literal cages or metaphorical ones – would rather have seen him dead. After all – wasn't it one of those he kept closest who did him in eventually? Some were mislead, others had no other choice, and the rest just didn't know there was anything better. Orochimaru was a powerful and smart shinobi with no regard to life whatsoever. Given the option, it was usually better to swallow your morals than be thrown behind bars. The result would likely remain the same, only your life being that much simpler." His tone remained even, but Shikamaru thought he spotted the slightest twinge in his lip by the end. Regret? Maybe.

"And how does that work, exactly? If I understand correctly, there will be both former prisoners and former warders here. Everyone just gets along?"

"Not immediately, but by now, yes. Those who truly were cruel are long gone, and the rest can understand each other well enough. It actually wasn't as difficult as you probably think. Our similarities outweigh our differences."

"Is that why there is no official leader? You don't want to remind them of him?" Tsunade had actually been wondering about that ever since their arrival. Knowing Taka must have been highly ranked among Orochimaru's cronies could support it.

"Hmm. Maybe in part. I never cared for formality, though, nor did I have any desire to control anyone's fate.

"I know what you must be thinking, but surely the rest of your party is looking for signs of old remnants even now. So, can we get back to what we are here for?"

Tsunade was not convinced... but decided his hate for Orochimaru, at least, looked genuine enough. The rest... well. She trusted her shinobi to find anything untoward Taka may be hiding. Speaking of which... "Yes, that would likely be best. By the way, that is a rather interesting outfit for indoors."

He smirked, knowing she was referring to the hood he still kept low over his face. "It is a fairly unique fabric. I could probably provide you some, if you are interested?"

From there, the conversation took a more practical turn. Looks like an alliance may actually come of this, after all.

* * *

When Naruto woke up that day, it was to find Tsunade and Shikamaru already gone, and orders to try and find out as much about Oto – and what it may hide – as possible. He was miffed at being so underhandedly kept out of the "important stuff", but had to admit to wanting to check up some things they saw on their way, anyway. Having Hinata to accompany him through fields and blossoming paths was, admittedly, a bonus. And so, they spent the last hour or so walking around and talking to random people, Hinata taking full advantage of the allowing of her byakugan, as the occasional affectionate cat rubbed against their legs.

They were passing by the Children's House when Naruto stopped, looking in its direction. "Do you want to get closer?" Hinata asked, voice kind as always and eyes brimming with affection.

Naruto was dying to, actually. He always liked children, both when he had been one himself and now that he was older. He could bask in the enthusiasm that matched his own without anyone rolling their eyes, could help guide them through both mischief and life... Could give them the same feeling he used to get from the old hokage ji-ji. He nodded resolutely, his smile turning to a beam. "You bet, dattebayo! Besides, that's kind of working, right? No one is more honest that a kid!" Hinata giggled and gave a brief nod of her own, and they made their way to the playground at the front of the building.

They spent their time conversing with the teens, learning that most of them also lived in the large residence. Unlike the younger ones, they had the choice to live on their own, but they liked the feeling of the place. Besides, many of them had, by then, come to consider the little ones as siblings of sorts. Even those who did move often came to visit, and several adults resided in the structure as well, to ensure someone was at hand at all times.

The younger kids approached them curiously, some even shyly, at first, but had quickly warmed up to them. Before long, they found themselves laughing, chasing and being chased by squealing groups of miniature people. At one point, Naruto was regaling an avid crowd with exaggerated stories of his past antics and missions, as Hinata helped a little girl weave a flower crown. Looking at her, Naruto couldn't help staring at the tranquil picture the scene made. Hinata looked up, blushed, and turned back to the child in a flustered hurry.

They even got to help put the little ones down for their nap.

All in all, it was a very good day.

* * *

Anko was walking through the streets, looking around in suspicion. She tried to use her training to read the people around her, see if anything more than curiosity was hidden behind the gazes they sent her way.

She had to admit, though, that the most she could spot was more a tentative hope than malice.

She glared at another flash of scales in the grass. It was true that not **that** many snakes were to be seen, but she also knew enough about them to know how easily they could go **un** seen. It didn't help that this used to be the domain of Orochimaru, who was rather fond of his snake summons. The rest were naive to dismiss the reptiles so easily just because other creatures were abundant here as well. She, however, knew better. And she refused to believe the stain of her former mentor could vanish so completely and with such ease. She sat on a bench, unable to keep her hand from her neck.

Just what happened here? What were these people hiding?

And then, there was that other issue...

"So, found something? Anko, right?"

She raised her head to see Karin, looking disinterested. "There sure are a lot of snakes here."

Karin shrugged. "And hawks. Not many mice, though." At that, Anko let out a reluctant chuckle that Karin, apparently, had decided to take as a sign to sit down beside her. "You know," she started, breaking the brief silence, "I think that is the first time I see this mark on a foreigner." Anko removed her hand from her neck, not having realized it was still resting there.

"Yeah, well. The joys of well-hidden agendas." In the silence that stretched between them, Anko glared at another snake, before sending a suspicious look at a cat she could have sworn was eying her disdainfully. "By the way, there is something I have wondered about for a while."

"Oh?"

"About two and a half years ago, Konoha ANBU found a decapitated head close to the location of a former base of Orochimaru's. The killer is still unknown, but it was identified as one Yakushi Kabuto."

"Of course they did. It was meant to be found."

Karin remembered that day. It had been ordinary for the time; Hebi, along with a few others, had been searching through another of Orochimaru's bases. Kabuto had shown up as they collapsed the structure, having buried the dead. He had raged, screaming about 'the loss of Orochimaru-sama's life-work', and how they were stealing from him not only Orochimaru-sama but the chance to unite with him, as well. To become him.

She had never seen Sasuke be so brutal. He had used tsukuyomi despite the strain and his inexperience with the technique. Normally, the Uchiha never attacked with genjutsu. It wasn't his strong point but more than that, unlike his brother, he considered the invasion of the mind a deplorable and humiliating tactic. He had reduced Kabuto to a staring, quivering, mumbling mess, before sicking Suigetsu on him.

It was the first time the Hozuki had been given free reign, and he took it with so much glee, it made him look depressed before. When all was done, Sasuke burned all but his head. When they got back to the fledgling village, and word spread, the people insisted on throwing a party regardless of their meager means.

And if she had spent much time working at the man's side, all it meant was even fewer reasons to mourn him.

She noted Anko's raised brow and said "What? You thought I would pretend not to know? It was a national holiday.

"I know what you are trying to get at. There really isn't much to it, though, and anyone will tell you if asked; when we say Orochimaru's influence had been **purged** , we mean it. His fanatics were only a small part of those under his control. Anyone who stayed here, captive or subordinate, was not one of them. They were given one chance to leave peacefully – few took it. Those who tried to reclaim control, those who thought to return later to continue the sannin's work, those who thought to hide their true intentions and wait for the right moment to strike – were cut down. Literally. The same is still true for any that would move against our people, and they know it. It helps them sleep at night.

"So you can ask your questions – we have nothing to hide. All of **our** skeletons are out in the open. Can you say the same for Konoha?" With that, Karin took her leave. As for Anko, she was disturbed at how much the bloody story reassured her – whatever scrutiny they were under was, apparently, no different to everyone else's. But then... what of that last gibe? Was Karin referring to something specific, or was this just a general reference to all shinobi villages? Does it matter?

* * *

Kakashi sat at the table, careful to keep his face hidden as he ate from all the people around. _Things must be going unexpectedly well_ , he mused, _for Tsunade-sama to have accepted an invitation to dinner_. They were in a large glade that doubled as both the village square and dining hall. The food was kept heated in large pans while the diners plated what they liked and sat at the many tables strewn throughout the area. Not everyone ate here, some going to the larder for supplies to make their own meals, but to the Konoha shinobi it felt as if the entire population was present. Occasionally, someone would show up to refill or replace one dish or another, the communal food being left available for several hours to accommodate as many as possible.

The Konoha delegation was seated with Taka, Karin, a kindly giant of a man who introduced himself as Juugo, a sharp-toothed and sharp-tongued swordsman named Suigetsu, and a few others. He took the opportunity to observe their host, noting the ease of those around him, the periodic gibe surprisingly thrown his way, and the quiet with which he took it. If this man was a dictator, he was clearly doing something wrong. There was less deference paid to him than there was to the hokage, and he appeared to prefer it.

Kakashi wondered at the difference between now and the long speech upon their arrival, and couldn't help wondering if Taka had to force himself to speak so much out of necessity. Looking at him now, were he not literally surrounded by people, Kakashi may well have dubbed him a recluse.

A tray suddenly landed on the table by his side, a voice happily announcing right in his ear "They have ramen here, dattebayo!" Hinata settled much more serenely on the next seat over, blushing a little at the attention suddenly aimed their way but a small smile still adorning her lips at her boyfriend's antics. "Naruto-kun..."

"Heh... really? How interesting..." Suigetsu said, throwing a smirk Taka's way that was ignored rather pointedly.

"Say, Taka-sama," Kakashi started, deciding to ask about one of the things that had bothered him throughout the day. "No 'sama'. Just 'Taka' is fine." Taka cut him off. He was at least right about that, then. "Alright." he continued, "Taka, then. I have taken a morning stroll through the village, and couldn't help noticing the gates. You have mentioned the presence of guards yesterday, but I hadn't seen any."

"Oh? Are you implying our security is lax? How embarrassing..." Now Suigetsu's smirk shifted to Karin.

It was the first sign of irritation from Taka through the whole meal, but he sounded more like a scolding parent than angry leader; "Suigetsu."

"Let me guess... play nice, right? You got it boss. For you."

Taka sighed, "You are going on that mission tomorrow." Then he turned to answer Kakashi. "You may not see them, but they are there. I assure you that our borders are the most tightly guarded you are likely to come across, and should an attack ever come the defenses will rise so soon the enemy won't even make it to the gate. Not all barricades are visible."

A smug look flitted over Karin's face, and Kakashi realized that whatever the nature of Oto's defense – she was the overseer of it.

"So, Taka, since we're all kinda taking a break and all, can I ask you something?" _Naruto..._ Kakashi already knew the question. Even Taka appeared to be steeling himself before turning to the blond with a mild "Of course."

"Do you know anything about Uchiha Sasuke? I mean, I haven't heard anything about him in a long time, and he's my friend, so I worry, you know?" All conversation seemed to stop for a minute; those involving the Konoha shinobi in apologetic embarrassment and the rest in... tension? Then again, some of these people had likely ran into the Uchiha at some point. Who knew what kind of impression they had of him?

"I can not tell you where he is at the moment," Taka appeared to be choosing his words more carefully than when addressing politics, "but sometimes a man is not found because he does not wish to be. Won't you respect his wishes?"

Naruto's eyes grew huge, glittering with hope and happiness. "So... He isn't dead then? I'm right?"

"Dead?" there was amusement in his tone, "No, I don't think so, though I have heard these rumors. I think he is only living his life the way he wants to."


	7. Of Curses and Seals

**AN:** Sorry for the slight delay. Not much to say just... a lot happened yesterday and I... forgot. Sorry.

* * *

 **Chapter 6: Of Curses and Seals  
**

They have been in Oto for some days now, and could still find no evidence of foul-play. This morning found Shino, as did most days, sitting at a bench with a small kitten purring in is lap as his kikaichuu scanned the area. Unlike Hinata, however, they were not looking for hidden crannies or disturbing laboratories. Sure, if ever they chanced upon a conversation of particular note they had standing orders to report at once, but for the most part, they were fulfilling an assignment only they could.

They were scanning the population, looking for specific chem-signals.

It was a little known capability of the Aburame clan's bugs, and as such often under-utilized. The fifth hokage, however, was a medic, and as such knew there were better ways to divine secrets people were trying to keep hidden. Questions and body language alone were limited, especially among those trained in the art of hiding them. But no one could truly control their biology, all the more so when unaware it could be examined so easily. If there was any fear, hopelessness, rage or malice among them, Shino will know.

So far, there was nothing of the like beyond what is natural in any community.

So today, Shino just sat on his bench, under an apple tree, taking in the peace of the hour and bustle of life around him. _It is not so unlike Konoha, really, when taken in like this_ , he mused. The scent of grass was stronger, the animals less domesticated, the people less prone to gossip and the roads less sturdy... but that was about it. Shino had come to enjoy people-watching. Born of the tendency of most to fail to notice his presence, he had not always felt so. But time had passed, and he made friends, and the sting eased away to leave behind a feeling of contentment. Also, it was a valuable skill for a shinobi, one he had taken full advantage of since their arrival. But, so far, there wasno more ill intent in the villagers' conversations here, than back home.

It came as a great surprise, then, when a small beetle made a beeline right to him, moving fast and buzzing a frantic pitch. Shino stretched out a finger, listening to the tiny creature as only one who raised it could. There was a sudden shift, apparently, an unexplained anger that started to emanate from one of the villagers. Unfortunately, the insect could not communicate much about the particulars of the infraction beyond a sense of confusion as to the cause and a seeming lack of particular target. Deciding to take a closer look, Shino followed it to an area just off the main road, not far from the village' library.

He froze a few paces away from the scene, unable to understand at first just what he was seeing.

A man was standing on the road, bent forward at the waist, and holding his head as if in great pain, all but pulling his hair out. On his neck, Orochimaru's curse mark – he had no idea if that of heaven or earth – was burning orange. Around it, the circular seal Kakashi had guessed was intended to suppress it pulsed black and red, fighting the other. As Shino watched, it turned black for the last time and orange stains began covering the man. The stains soon enveloped his entire body before turning gray, and suddenly there was a half-boar standing there, looking all around him with a combined rage and glee that made a shiver ripple through Shino's skin and sent his poor kikaichuu back into the folds of his coat.

Nearby, a hawk took flight from the treetop it had been perched on, hurrying in the opposite direction.

The cursed villager let out a hysterical laugh, looking behind himself. His gaze was aimed at a young girl, around twelve years old, that happened to be in the area. Other than Shino himself, no one else seemed to be present, and he was still too far away. "Kill!"

Her eyes were wide, and she was backing away, trying to calm the man down, back to his senses. "Jiro! Calm down!" He only laughed at her, advancing slowly, eyes stalking her movements like a predator. Shino realized, in that moment, that is all he was. But despite her fear, even as she was doing her best to keep a distance, she never stopped trying to reach the man under the beast, "Get control of yourself!"

All her effort appeared to be useless, and he was lounging at her now, trying to attack. The girl, likely trained as a shinobi, was managing to evade him well enough for now, but for how much longer? Shino may only have had stories of the curse mark until now, but they were enough for him to realize the strength and stamina boost granted by them was not to be dismissed. He has had enough. He no longer cared that this was a foreign village he was in for diplomatic reasons, or that this girl probably knew more about what was going on than he did. He started making his way forward, no longer able to just watch from afar.

It was then that her eyes hardened in determination. Shino stopped in his tracks for the second time when she started singing.

It was the last thing one would expect in this situation. The notes were soothing, beautiful, and seemed to belie the set of her mouth and crease of her brow. They carried on the wind and wound their way strait into his heart. Remarkably, the crazed man paused as well. He appeared confused, unsure, then dropped to his knees with a cry. Slowly, the effects of the curse mark retreated, the girl's face easing into something gentler as she kept singing. A black streak flew right by Shino just as the man, Jiro, was himself again, shaking and mumbling apologies, and the song stopped.

The streak knelt by Jiro, hand on his shoulder, and was revealed to be Taka. Someone must have alerted him, because as far as Shino was aware, he was supposed to be in conference with the hokage. "Stop apologizing. No harm was done. Right, Asuka?" He was speaking gently to the quivering man at his side, but turned to the girl with his last sentence. Her nod was resolute, leaving no room for argument, "Yes! I'm fine, and it wasn't your fault anyway, so you don't need to apologize!" With a start, Shino realized she wasn't lying. She truly believed everything she said.

"But I could have hurt you. I could have killed you!" Jiro sounded incredibly broken, but Shino found he agreed with him; no harm was done – but it **could have**. If it weren't for whatever it was that the girl herself did... And how was Taka so calm? After his warning to them, after the bloody tale Anko had recounted to them of just how far the people of this village were willing to go when threatened... was he truly going to just let the incident lie?

"But you didn't." apparently, he was. "Everyone has bad days, and the seal still acts up from time to time, regardless of the suppression seal. I will see if I can modify it more, but you know it will never be perfect. This is no slight against you, nor the power of your will." Jiro still looked unconvinced. "Are you feeling okay? Did something happen lately?" A shake of the head. Either 'no' or 'I don't want to talk about it'. Taka nodded once before standing up, remarking, as if in an after thought, "I think Juugo is meditating by the lake." Jiro gave a brief nod of his own before rising to his feet and walking away, still looking rather dejected.

Taka sighed, and turned to the girl. "You did well, Asuka. Are you truly alright?"

"Yeah. I was a little scared, but... I'm just glad I could help. Is Jiro-san going to be fine?"

Taka smiled at her, "I'm sure he is. Just leave it to Juugo." Her smile widened in response, then she turned to Shino, gave a nod of farewell, and left. Taka was still staring after her when he spoke. "Asuka was originally of the Hibari clan. Their kekei-genkai lies in their voice. They could affect anyone's emotions, which means they hold the ability to manipulate their actions. You can see why he was interested." Shino most definitely could, and it pissed him off. "Her little sister died about four years ago in one of his labs. It's good to see her smiling again."

"Does this happen often?" Shino asked.

"Not so much anymore. Usually the seals, combined with the wills of those baring them, keep it well under control. But they are not infallible, and everyone has weak moments. Normally when this does happen, myself or Juugo can get the situation handled. It's good to know we have Asuka to rely on now, as well. She always wanted to help, and being able to must have made her happy."

"Even so, I would imagine that kind of seal is rather complex. Even from a distance, they look similar but not identical." For once, it was Shino who failed to notice the presence of others. Tsunade-sama must have followed Taka at a more sedate pace – giving credence to his theory he had been alerted in the middle of a conference – and was now standing beside him, a frustrated Naruto by her side and Shikamaru still making his lazy way some distance from them.

"They are each personally tailored to the individual they were put on, but I don't want them to turn into control seals so there is only so much they can do."

Tsunade's right eyebrow rose. "That sounds even more complicated. And like it may combine some medical knowledge, as well." the last sounded like it carried a question, and Taka chose to answer, "Rudimentary at best. Mostly from books and observation.

"But, if the seals interest you, I'm sure something can be worked out."

Shino blocked out what started to sound like the beginning of another part of negotiations. He stared into the distance, where Jiro had gone. He had seen Juugo on occasion, mostly when they had their meals in the glade with the Oto villagers, and was intrigued by the silent man. Perhaps it was a sense of kinship born of the perceived similarities in their personalities, perhaps something else. But now he was even more curious. He excused himself from his leader and the leader under whose wing he currently resided, and made his way to the lake. Just what significance did the kind-mannered man have in regards to the curse mark and those inflicted with it?

* * *

Juugo was sitting cross-legged in the grass by the water. Above, flying closer to the figure than would be considered normal, a few birds flitted around and away and back again, chirping merrily. A bunny or squirrel would come over on occasion, twitching its little nose at the man's leg or arm before darting off, while a small puppy lay on his lap getting petted like no one's business.

Next to him, Jiro sat in much the same position – sans animals – head bowed and eyes down. The earlier incident clearly weighed on his mind still, despite of Taka's and Asuka's words. He truly was a good man, and having a mark that could so easily cause him to do harm to others made him angry. Anger, however, was dangerous in the presence of the curse mark, so all he was really left to feel was the depression.

"Don't over-think it," Juugo spoke at last, "you were not at fault, and no damage was done."

"Because I was lucky enough that the person I attacked was someone who could stop me. What if this happens again? What if next time, I won't have the same luck? What if... what if I hurt one of the children?"

Juugo looked deep in thought, but when he spoke he did not seem to address any of those questions. "Have you been to visit him this week?"

"I was on my way to do just that, but... how can I, now?"

"I think it will do you good."

"I could hurt him. This is why I can't trust myself to raise him, after all."

Juugo shook his head. "It was suppressed. If anything, there is less of a chance of it happening now."

Jiro still looked unconvinced, and Juugo, seeing this, continued: "Don't let this control your life. Don't shut yourself away for what-ifs. I've been there, remember? It is a lonely place."

"But you haven't been for months." there was no accusation in his tone, only despair.

"Well, I have had help." his hand touched the back of his neck, where a symbol marred the skin, "And an episode could still happen, like the rest of you. But I have learned that the less you think on it, the more time you spend with people or little-ones," he gave the puppy an affectionate look, "the easier it is to avoid."

The conversation continued for some minutes longer, then came a prolonged silence where both just stared at the water, until Jiro finally left. Juugo remained in his contemplation for a while longer, before saying "You can come down from there, you know."

Shino jumped down from his perch in a nearby tree, from which he had watched unseen. He wondered just how long Juugo had been aware of his presence, and why he hadn't said anything until now. He sat by the peaceful giant, and dared ask. He didn't know if the answer, "A little bird told me", was serious or not, but the amused eyes gave him confidence to ask about other things that have been on his mind.

It was night by the time he got back to the house.


	8. Fallen Kings

**AN:** Okay, so I just realized I totally forgot to add the warnings in this site... oops. Anyway, heavy themes start showing up starting with this chapter. Nothing too explicit yet in my opinion, but it definitely starts to become present and will keep being referenced on future chapters as well. Also, though there is time for it yet, there will be a much heavier chapter in the future that deals mainly with the theme brought here, as well as some related others. I will mark it, and you will know when it comes, but you will at least be aware of it now and hopefully know whether or not you could handle it. So yeah, a slight warning for this one though I wouldn't put it on trigger-warning territory yet (sorry...). Tissue box is advised.  
Also, the possible consequences of messing with people's genetics without giving a shit.

Hope I did justice to the emotions here, and that you keep liking this fic.

* * *

 **Chapter 7: Fallen Kings**

The conferences between Konoha and Oto had been going well, and no hint of trickery had been discovered. In the time that passed, agreements had been reached, consisting mainly of economic support through Konoha's time of recovery, limited access to various innovative methods of chakra use, and a mutual military alliance and medical delegation to Oto. Tsunade also asked for – and received – a permit for unhindered access to the Oto library for a small number of seal-masters to study the new developments to their area of expertise, with the caveat that the sharing of information be mutual. Another request of Taka's – for Konoha to arrange a summit with the four other big nation in the name of Oto – will have to be approved by the council, as well, and so was left out for the time being.

Taka had also given her some incredibly disturbing information regarding Akatsuki: the proclaimed identity of its leader, the creation of the juubi, the alliance it held with the smaller shinobi nations – angered at the greater still and unaware of the ultimate goal – and the scale of their progress. Eight bijuu down, only one more to go. There was still much he hid from her, and she had the feeling he would have given any and all information of Akatsuki regardless, but she was still hesitant to sign. Despite the lack of evidence of foul play, it still felt a bit too easy to her, and she knew there was much he wasn't saying. It wasn't that she considered him dumb enough to use the afformetioned meeting to attack all five kage at once, but there had to be something she was missing.

Taka, of course, took note of the hesitation – all the more so now when all was just about done. "Are you really so distrustful of us, still?"

"Well, I will be the first to praise the value of medics, but I still find it difficult to believe you will concede so much for not much more than this. Even if you are as opposed to Akatsuki as we are, you know we have more to gain than you in regards to the sharing of sealing techniques, and the political support remains uncertain. These are quite the generous terms you are offering us for resupplying. I am waiting for the other shoe to drop."

Taka nodded once, acknowledging the point, and seemed to be thinking something over. Then, having apparently reached a decision, he rose to his feet, saying "Come then. I think you will understand better if I showed you." With that, he left the house, Tsunade following, puzzled.

"Here we are."

Tsunade looked around her. It was a park she hadn't been to yet, beds of flowers and young trees in organized rows – much unlike most near-wild greenery in this village. Painted rocks formed cheery, almost childish, mosaics worming their way between the plants. All in all, the whiplash of color and fresh scent of the air made her feel… happy. Giddy, almost. The atmosphere was definitely calming here, but she wondered why he brought her to this place. How was such a playful location supposed to show her the gravity of their need for medics?

Luckily, Taka explained before she needed to ask: "Many of us, as you well know, have been subjected to Orochimaru's… curiosity. We can never know the full ramifications of these operations until they present themselves, as our own well-being never played any part in it. Even to those who served him, it was not uncommon for him to do something, change something. Even if only to see what their bodies' reactions will be. And ever since our lives had settled, since we started to truly **live** , one of those ramifications made itself quite known.

"Oto is a small village. A young village, as well, for none of us had yet reached the age of forty. We come from powerful bloodlines and long histories… and our miscarriage rate stands on 80%."

At that, Tsunade felt her eyes nearly popping out of her skull in her shock. 80%?! There was no way, nothing to explain such a number… save for the explanation she had already been given. Orochimaru. Destroying lives without even having to be present. _Oh, he must be so proud of himself_ she thought derisively.

Taka carried on: "The day to day and military need for medics aside – we want to know just what has been done to us, and if there are any ways to alleviate even just some of it... if something can be done, if **this** can at all be prevented."

She could not recall hearing him sound so earnest, almost pleading with her, and yet… still… why? Why bring her **here**? What did this place…? A horrible feeling started rising in her gut and heart, and she suddenly took notice of the emphasis he put on the word 'this'. Almost fearing his answer – and still consciously unaware of the one she was expecting – she dared ask "Taka… just what is this place? Where are we?"

He answered on a sigh far too tired for one so young "A cemetery," he admitted, "the children's cemetery." He looked in her direction, mouth equal parts a smile, a smirk and a grimace, and though she could not see them, she had a feeling that his eyes were pleading with her "We just couldn't… We know it is silly, perhaps even plain stupid. It is most definitely not rational. But we just wanted to still be able to give them **something**. We could not bare the thought of leaving them to the cold. To the dark. We hoped to raise them happy, that they will never have to face anything of what we did… but in the end, we could not raise them at all. And still… it seemed so harsh… so unfair to them… to just…

"It's irrational, but we wanted for them to be happy in death if they could not in life. Maybe they can somehow see that… feel the love of the parents that were denied meeting them… maybe it is more to ease the parents' own pain, a selfish thing… or maybe it lacks meaning at all… But we just felt that we had to do that. The last thing we ever wanted for them was darkness."

Tsunade swallowed. She didn't know whether the whole thing was touching or horrifying. Most likely it was both. As it stood, though, she simply felt numb.

She couldn't even find the words to respond.

* * *

After the conversation with Tsunade, Sasuke found himself in the Children's House - the nursery, to be exact. There were not many infants here; most babies thankfully having parents who were capable of caring for them, and at this hour of the evening they did not require aid. To judge by the state of the few there – as well as that of their main caretaker on the nearby couch – this was very clearly nap-time. It was all for the better, though. He liked the calm, and often came here to think – as he had now, approaching one of the cribs.

That conversation, that trip, had brought back an old depression, one he had first felt sitting wounded on a cold cave's floor, not long after the death of his brother. He had managed to… perhaps not overcome, but move beyond that. At the time, as he stood on an ocean's bank staring at the sunset, remembering the best and the worst moments of his life, he had nearly given in to the familiar comfort of rage. No one will ever know how close he was to speak, to swear vengeance for an old crime on a new foe, when he was silently brought back from the brink.

It was the first time Karin had ever been hesitant to touch him. Normally, she just did – almost uncomfortably close, full bodied, strong gripped touches, and almost everywhere. But back then… back then, he felt the air shift as her hand hovered over his shoulder for a moment, as if unsure if her gesture would be taken for comfort or intrusion. Felt her whole body relax as, when that same hand landed gently on its mark, his own rose to squeeze it rather than shove it away. The presence of his clansman was inconsequential, all but forgotten, and in the end he had just said nothing. Not yet. Instead, he thought.

The old feeling came back to him now; the same old pain, doubt, guilt and helplessness, and the sense of insufficiency that seemed to accompany him his whole life, even before it ever became a nightmare. Try as he might, train as he might, as strong or as smart or as far as he ever had managed to get, no matter what he did or what he accomplished, when it came right down to it nothing ever changed. Always when most needed, in the most crucial of moments when it truly mattered… he failed. He was never enough. Nothing he did had ever been enough. He was too blind, or too weak, or too stubborn, or too late or too **something** to make things right.

He looked at the little boy in the crib he stood by, sleeping soundly. They would have been around his age, about a year or so. Had they lived. For all his past errors, Sasuke learned that it hurts most not to fail – but to be helpless. Whoever thought "there was nothing you could do" was a comfort, clearly never had to hear the words. After all, if you failed at least you were given the opportunity to try. Being denied even that, what else is there? There was nothing he could do. And nothing he could do differently, either. He just lost his child, easy as that, unable to even name them "son" or "daughter". They were just gone, without having been there in the first place.

He had felt loss before, of so many varieties. He had felt the loss of a world in an instant, a child's loss of his parents and uncles and grandparents and safety, the loss of innocence, the loss of self, the loss of dreams and the ability to trust and to hope, the loss of a brother, the loss of a path and purpose, and even the loss of a loved one by your own hand. Even when taken together at once, it all paled to the loss of a child.

The baby in the crib (his name was Yuu, Sasuke remembered, mother died in childbirth, father unfit but visiting often) was starting to fuss. Sasuke put a gentle hand on a soft cheek, lifting him up and out when the little boy started to curl around his arm like a tiny monkey. Maybe Suigetsu was right to call him a masochist. Maybe he was only torturing himself… But he couldn't help it. Besides, he always came here. It would have felt worse to stop.

He knew that there was no helping his child, and that whatever Tsunade may come up with – if she does at all – would likely not be applicable to them. He will never ask her to try for a child again, anyway, the loss of their baby nearly causing him to lose her as well in her mourning. But he knew the viciousness of this pain, and if he could somehow spare it even from a single couple… Failing that, if he could at least give them the answer **why** …

His whole life he had been failing those who counted most where it counted most. He had failed his parents, not being who they hoped for him to be, never meeting their expectations and unable to prevent their deaths. He failed his brother, not seeing through his lies and killing him instead of alleviating his crushing guilt. Failed his pseudo-siblings through abandonment. Failed his **child** … He had no intention of failing his people.

They had been through so much, **too** much already, and he hadn't done a thing to help them. The state of anarchy they had been left to after he killed Orochimaru and left had carried horrors of its own as well. But this was no longer guilt or penance or remorse. For the past three years he had come to truly know these people, and they became the clan he had lost. It had nothing to do with his brother's wishes or an ideal or making anything right. It was just them, people who knew him but liked him still for no reason he could see himself, people whose names and dreams he knew through familiarity, who were like a balm in his worst moments. It was a vow he made to them as well as himself, and he may not shout it every waking moment, but Sasuke had never been in the habit of breaking promises.

So he didn't care what it took. He had sworn to protect these people and their well-being, and he refused to come up short, even should this be the only thing he ever did right. He had long ago resolved to kill and torture and bargain and mediate and – ugh – do paperwork for their sake. He had all but shed his name and clan – so cherished and important in his life before – for Oto and its people; he will not back away now. If it took pleading with – even begging – Konoha of all villages to do right by them, to give them the freedom and the life and the relief they so deserved… then so be it. He will not think twice, however difficult. He was no stranger to hardships or unfavorable acts for the sake of a higher goal, anyway.

And this goal was higher than any he had in the past.

Yuu had fallen back to sleep, and he lay him back in the crib before leaving the nursery and going to the area where the older toddlers played. After all, he already promised to spend some time with them when he first arrived, and he had just enough time for a story.


	9. Echoes

**AN:** MUCH more lighthearted chapter this time! That being said, for as far as he had come with emotions and getting over past trauma - Sasuke is still a vindictive jerk. It's why we love him. ^_^

* * *

 **Chapter 8: Echoes**

Hinata and Kakashi have been making their way back from the library accompanied by Taka. With the agreement currently being formulated by Tsunade and Karin, the day was soon approaching when the Konoha delegation will take their leave. Hinata, wishing to improve the lives of her clansmen and having tired of waiting for the rest of the main-branch of the Hyuuga to change, had been perusing sealing theory scrolls in an attempt to find a safe method to remove the curse seal from the branch-family. But with her days in Oto drawing to a close, so was her access to the necessary information. Hinata was no seal-master, and therefore will not be sent back here to study. And so, with the future of her family in mind, she hesitantly asked if it was possible to borrow some of the books.

It no longer came as a surprise when, after inquiring as to the reason for her sudden interest, Taka had offered to make her copies of the information he deemed relevant to her cause, some of which she was not previously aware of.

They ran into Kakashi as they descended to the ground floor, which contained mostly fiction. He had just finished his current Icha-Icha volume (again), and was looking to make an early start on one of the others. Taka then informed him that they didn't hold any of Jiraya's books, to much moaning.

So now they were all walking together towards the main residential area of the village, Kakashi with his head bowed forlornly glancing at his book and Hinata consulting with Taka regarding the pages she was given, seals in general and the field of curse-seals in particular. It was a peaceful time, unhurried, but one that hadn't lasted for very long.

A snake suddenly slithered their way at an urgent speed. It was a little over a meter long, very slim, and absolutely gorgeous; its body a dark gray with striking blue streaks, save for the head and the very tip of its body that were a vibrant red. Taka waited patiently as the reptile climbed him to be at ear level, but the angle of his mouth suggested worry. It quickly turned to anger as the snake, now clearly a summon, whispered something to him the Konoha shinobi couldn't catch. Then their host simply shunshined away - snake and all - without so much as an explanation or apology.

"Hinata, quick, see if you can track him with your byakugan. Something must have happened." Kakashi said, already exposing his own sharingan to try and track Taka's chakra. Hinata immediately obeyed, and soon they managed to pin down his location at the edge of the forest at the back of the village, where it was the least populated, and hurried to it.

When they came closer, it was to an odd sight. Taka stood there, engulfed in a purple cloud of chakra that appeared to resemble bones, a more substantial growth – shaped like an armored hand – was holding on to a small child who looked shocked. The area near the girl was littered with shuriken, and a short distance away a man's body was violently twitching, the blue coral snake from earlier slithering away from him, looking quite satisfied with itself. As they landed, Taka raised a hand, shooting senbon-shaped lightning chakra at a random tree. The attack hit another man, ending his attempt to flee with a fall he did not get back up from, seemingly paralyzed.

"Nikki, close your eyes, and don't listen." Taka's voice was calm, but obviously struggling to restrain the rage he felt from entering it. Nikki obeyed immediately, shutting her eyes tight and covering her ears with her hands, the protective hand still clutching her but seemingly doing no harm.

Taka's restraint was clearly fraying as he spoke through gritted teeth: "I warned you, didn't I?" A thin black flame suddenly ignited on the man's body, moving around like another snake, and the scream reverberated through the woods. The Konoha shinobi were stunned, and had no authority to do anything anyway, but Hinata couldn't reconcile the unassuming – if proud – leader they came to know during their stay in this peaceful village with this sadistic cruelty. It simply would not compute. Kakashi, on the other hand… Kakashi looked almost more shocked than her, but there was also a calculating air to him, as if he was figuring something out.

Taka's still disturbingly calm, quiet voice somehow managed to be heard clearly over his victim's scream, as the flame on his chest seemed to grow sharp tentacles, stabbing and entering him; "I truly don't enjoy killing. Under other circumstances I may have only banished you. At the very least I try to make the death as quick and painless as possible… But you went after a **child**." The black flame burst out of his eyes now, the screams turning into a shriek, and the blood foaming from his mouth suggested internal damage as well. The original flame on the man's chest left almost artistic burn patterns Hinata easily recognized to be located around the densest and most sensitive nerve bundles. "Your pain, I rather enjoy." The shriek finally quieted as another burst of flame rose from his mouth, like a parody of a dragon, and moments after he was dead. The black flames rose one last time, consuming the body in a matter of seconds, leaving not even ash behind, and another consumed the other man, long dead by this point.

With a last disdainful sneer, Taka turned to the little girl at his side, releasing the jutsu used to protect her. What little was visible of his face immediately softened into a true smile as he knelt by her, lightly touching her hand. "You can open your eyes now. Everything is fine." Nikki did as told; turning a beaming smile at the man they had just witnessed mercilessly torturing a person to death right next to her, not concerned in the slightest. There was no way she didn't hear the screams only through the cover of her palms, and yet, if she did, there was no indication. "Were you hurt?" he asked, firmly but gently. "No, nii-san." the girl replied. "Good."

He stood back up and summoned another snake, this one bigger than the hokage's tower "Aoda, take her back. Make sure she is safe." His tone left no room for argument and the giant snake didn't try "Understood." was all he said.

"Nii-san, can I play with Aoda-kun?" Taka sent his snake a playfully conspiratorial grin. "I don't know. Why don't we ask him? What do you say Aoda? Feel like playing with the midget?" Aoda's eyes positively shone, and suddenly he looked more like a fond uncle than a giant reptile. "I would very much like to. It has been a while." "It is settled then." Taka said, "Have fun, Nikki." "Yay!"

Never had they seen – or even imagined – a child so thrilled at the prospect of spending time with a gigantic snake. Nikki hurriedly climbed on to Aoda, the snake helping her out a bit. When she was finally settled, he announced "Hold on tight!" before taking off at an astounding speed, engulfed in shrieks of laughter. It appeared they will be back in the village proper in no time.

Then Taka turned to his other snake: "Thank you, Wamon. Your warning saved her life."

"No," the snake sounded almost ashamed, "I was almost too late. They have been here for weeks; we should have noticed something earlier."

"Nonsense. They were being careful; after all I don't hide the fact there is close surveillance here. If anything, they took the wrong part of my warning to heart in place of what they should have.

"You, though, have done very well! I believe a reward is in order. What do you think - a cobra?" It was amazing how a snake could blush – and with an already red head! Blue coral snakes often favored other snakes as food, but the stink eye from his friends made it a rare delicacy for Wamon, regardless of those snakes not being sentient. A reward, though, meant no silent treatment. Taka's smile broadened "King cobra it is. Find me later, I promise I will have it for you. Now go. Get some rest. You've earned it."

"I suppose it is always amusing seeing the hatchlings using Aoda as a jungle-gym." the snake answered, before hurrying after his easygoing clan-mate.

"So, Sasuke…" Kakashi stated in the deceptively disinterested voice he was known for, "I see you have unlocked your mangekyo." Hinata's gasp was more breath than sound, as she turned wide eyes and an open mouth to Taka.

When no reaction came from the hooded man, Kakashi continued: "Well, I suppose there is some comfort in knowing you are still just as vindictive."

"Heh? Well, like I said before, I am not known for my forgiveness." The voice was different from before, and a quick check with her byakugan confirmed that there was no concentration of chakra in his throat; the jutsu was released. But the voice itself… though they had hardly ever spoken to each other, she recognized that voice, even after all those years... "Sasuke… kun? Is it really you?"

Taka sighed, but started to slowly remove the hood, "Well, I suppose it can't be helped, anymore, though I had hoped to keep this secret for a while longer." Now, with the hood removed, she could see that it really was Uchiha Sasuke standing in front of them. He was older, there were markings by the edges of his black eyes, and his messy raven hair was much longer, held back in a low pony-tail with a red tie. Kakashi had either gotten over his own shock when he figured it out or chose to ignore it, for while she just stood there blinking at the supposedly long-dead Uchiha, he carried on the conversation: "Why though? You had always been proud of your name and clan… why opt to hide it now?"

"A name… A clan as old and infamous as my own… it holds a lot of weight. A lot of history. It tends to stand out." he shrugged. The truth was that Sasuke still loved and was proud of his clan – despite being aware now of several of their less favorable actions – but had no wish to be defined by it. For seemingly his entire life, he had been viewed as someone other than himself; to his father he was a mere shadow of his brother, to his clan a naive child still too young to understand the reality to which he was born. After the massacre, the entire shinobi world viewed him as his whole clan, and he had only ever been a tool to Konoha or Orochimaru. Even to Naruto and Sakura he had been more an idea than a person, where as Kakashi only saw himself.

In his worse days, he wondered if even his brother ever saw the person he was at all, or only the one he wanted him to be and the concept of 'little brother'.

In a way, there was freedom in simply being 'Taka'. While he still continued being known as 'Sasuke' within Oto, among the people who had come to truly know him, he had built a personality for outsiders that was more an unveiling than a mask. And even among those he trusted most, he still shied away from 'Uchiha', no longer wearing the fan. He knew the truth of his family's reputation now, and he'll be damned if he allowed these people – this little pseudo-clan of a village only trying to rebuild their life – to be judged on the past of a dead clan they have had nothing to do with. Be it for good or bad.

More than likely it would be the bad.

"Besides, let me remind you of the first thing that your future bakage had asked me as a foreign dignitary. Simply put, I had no wish to be found."

"Well, it appears you are found now, so that disguise is redundant. And speaking of Naruto, he's going to be very excited, you know, even pissed at you basically lying to him."

"Oh, yes!" Hinata had finally gotten over her shock, thinking of the relief and joy her boyfriend will feel at finding his best friend not only alive – but well. "He will be so happy! Naruto-kun never gave up on you, even when everyone else believed you dead – including Sakura-chan! He's going to be ecstatic!" Now, Sasuke felt a vague sense of foreboding slowly spreading through him. This will lead to disaster, he just knew it.

Life (and Kakashi) did not disappoint.

"Right you are, Hinata-chan! Really, it will only be crueler to have him find out last. I mean, he might need some time to get over the shock and news like this is best delivered in private. You should go ahead and make sure he's prepared to see Sasuke again, don't you think?" he even had the gall to sound caring, the asshole!

"You're right, Kakashi-sensei!" Hinata, unfortunately, was perfectly sincere, "I will go find him right now!"

After she was gone, there was a long silence, Sasuke sending his childhood teacher one of his most freezing death-glares, as the other watched the direction in which the Hyuuga had disappeared to complete nonchalance. Finally, in the most deadpan voice, he said: "I hate you."

"Mah, Sasuke… don't say such things you don't even mean…"

"I really do."

"No need to thank me, Sasuke-kun. I always love helping my cute little students!"

"…"

"I do wonder though," Kakashi's tone suddenly turned serious as the pair started walking back to the village proper, "wasn't killing them a little rash? Wouldn't it have been beneficial to know the reason for the attack?"

Sasuke shrugged. "Nikki's mother was of an esteemed clan of Ame's. These two were Ame nukenin that asked to be integrated into Oto. That is all I need to know, really." At Kakashi's raised eyebrow, he elaborated: "Most likely, they were spies whose time came to leave their post and report back, but decided to keep their village's kekei-genkai from others' hands by killing a little girl. Say what you will about her, but I doubt Konan had actually put them up to this. She probably doesn't know."

"So let me get this straight – you think that they were spying on you and your village for Akatsuki… and you aren't worried?" he was stunned but, really, who could blame him? Akatsuki were hardly a foe to be taken lightly and Sasuke himself was staying hidden. Shouldn't spies from dangerous criminal organizations be a little worrying to him?

But Sasuke just shrugged. "Well, it isn't like there is much about me they could say that Akatsuki's leader doesn't already know or suspect. Including my mangekyo. And while he has no knowledge of all I can do – spies in this village will not be able to find out about it either as I do not train in such destructive techniques here. As for the village… our borders are tight and their security doesn't rely on the guards. Being here will only teach them we will not be joining the little alliance they're putting together – all the more so because of who I am – and that none of these people will be persuaded to betray me as I will simply stand down if asked and everyone knows that. So really, spies here are useless.

"Plus," his grin turned smug, and **there** is the Sasuke Kakashi knew! "they never would have made it back. At some point they would have considered themselves to be at a safe distance and relaxed their guard, stopped pretending. Just as now, they would have been killed immediately. Even if they had made it to Ame, I have my own spies there and none of them are noticeable. But some are deadly. So one way or another, whatever unhelpful information they would have gotten – it would not have been delivered."

Kakashi mulled over this information. After the display from before, he suspected that at least some of Sasuke's spies were snakes. It truly was clever: no one looked at their feet while scanning for enemies and even if spotted they would likely be mistaken for no more than ordinary snakes. In a world where most summons called upon in battle were of Aoda's size, people tended to forget smaller ones existed. It was another reason why his own pack started wearing hitayate – they got sick of being viewed as pets.

And if some of them were in Ame as well… He remembered what happened to the shinobi Wamon bit and shuddered inwardly. Yes, they most definitely **were** deadly, in that case…

Still, there was one more thing that bothered him. "So, are you in the habit of sheltering nukenin, or was that some kind of trap?"

"Most nukenin may truly be dangerous criminals, but some of them just don't agree with their government for one reason or another, or have found themselves forced to flee. After all, simply leaving the village without notice is enough to be declared a nukenin, and all shinobi villages have had their share of corrupt officials – and before you start yes, Kakashi, I am including Konoha in this. Those who truly want a second chance to live a semblance of a normal life, that ask for freedom of judgment, are always welcome here regardless of any and all past actions. But if they seek to harm the people of this village… well…"

"I see."

* * *

 **Some end notes for a change:**

If you are wondering about blue coral snakes: these-beautiful-snakes-hunt-cobras-with-unique-venom-that-might-someday-help-us-relieve-pain  
Also, for the people that like picturing things like I do - in term of Sasuke's hair (man, that sounds weird) it is far less like Itachi and more akin to Indara - but black. Basically Madara or his curse-seal form, but tamed with the band.

And I think you can guess what comes next...


	10. Answers

**AN:** This was a difficult chapter to write. Hopefully it came out OK; I'm sorry if Sasuke may seem like his ranting a little - he is HEAVILY channeling me. Also, I hope I managed to find the right balance for Naruto, hat was the hardest POV for me to write.

* * *

 **Chapter 9: Answers**

"TEME!" The distant shout echoed just as they neared the first houses, filling the sky with fleeing birds. Sasuke could already feel the headache. Kakashi, helpful as ever, briefly put one hand on his shoulder and, with one last "Well, don't want to intrude!", shunshined away.

Sasuke sighed, trying to steel himself for the emotional mayhem this confrontation was bound to cause, and made it two more steps before a blond-and-orange whirlwind materialized in font of him, stopping just a few short feet away.

For a short eternity, Naruto just stood there, staring with an open mouth and wide eyes at the man he still considered his best friend, the brother that was lost to him for so long. When Hinata told him what she and Kakashi had discovered, he was incredulous. In that moment he felt so much, he could make no sense of it. He only believed her because he knew she would never hurt him with such a cruel joke. Even so, seeing him... He realized, suddenly, that until this very moment, when Sasuke was standing unhooded right in front of him, the knowledge hadn't sank in. Now that it did... Now, he managed to unravel one of the tangled feelings his heart was rendered to.

Naruto was **pissed off**. Royally.

"You lied to me." The low volume of the furious words surprised even him. Under normal circumstances Naruto didn't care much to control his voice, and it only got louder when angry. Now he felt too angered to even scream at him.

No... maybe he just felt too hurt.

It was all he could do not to throttle him and – probably – cause an international incident.

"Naruto..."

"You lied to me! You just sat there and told me you had no idea where my best friend was – when you were him! Why? Did you get some sick amusement out of watching me suffer? Seeing how stupid I really am still caring about you? Still looking for you?" Okay. **Now** he was shouting. This was better. This was **Naruto**.

This, Sasuke could work with.

"First of all, I had never lied to you. I don't recall ever saying that I don't know. I never tried to make you think I'm dead. I just told you, that some people don't want to be found – and I didn't. Not yet. Not now, even, but it can't be helped anymore. Not everything is about you.

"I'm sorry that my actions hurt you, I really am. You were always like a little brother to me and I don't mind admitting that now. But you are one of the most selfish people I know – which is so absurd considering just how selfless you tend to be. Believe it or not, but my decisions don't actually revolve around you."

Naruto's face did that funny thing, where they didn't seem to know if their owner was about to cry or attack. Knowing which won more often, Sasuke suggested, "Look, Naruto... no more hiding, I promise. I'll tell you whatever you want, but can we get inside first?"

For now, a subdued nod will have to do.

Naruto was staring at his tea, not even holding the cup. Sasuke took another sip of his, sighed, and put it on the table. "Just talk, dobe. This silence is actually scaring me."

Naruto couldn't help the twitch at the side of his mouth at the old nickname. Before, when Sasuke called him 'brother' for the first time ever, it didn't fully register among the other, less favorable, things he said. Now though, he knew they are alright. Everything was still kinda awkward, but he could feel his confidence returning to him. "I just don't get it. Why? Why did you just vanish like that? Why come here? Why contact us but not let us know it's you? Why... why can't you just come home?"

The underlying "why did you leave me" was left unsaid, and Sasuke really couldn't think of any way to put it other than "it had nothing to do with you" which wouldn't help in the least, so he decided to treat the question at face value. The rest of them he either couldn't tell or held the same answer, anyway: "I am home."

"Don't mess with me, Sasuke. You know what I'm talking about. I know that you care about these people, that you feel obligated to protect them, and this place **is** kinda awesome, but Konoha is your home. It always was!"

"No, it wasn't. It is **your** home. But it had never been mine." _That is why it had been so easy for me to leave. That is what you could never understand._

Even before the massacre of his family, Sasuke didn't really know the village itself. His home was restricted to the Uchiha district – never having been anywhere outside of it other than the academy and the path leading to it. He hadn't really spoken to anyone not of his clan, too focused on his studies in the academy and not really having other occasions to. The village was there, sure, and the Uchiha supposedly a part of it, but to the child Sasuke was, it was almost something abstract. It lacked substance, feeling. He had no emotional connection to the place called Konoha, at all.

And then that night happened. And He had **no** home.

"You guys... Team seven could have become my home in time, I think. Maybe it already started to be, I don't know. But you were people. You, Sakura, Kakashi... just because you happened to be in Konoha didn't really turn you **into** Konoha. And it was too early, anyway." _In the end, it didn't keep me from leaving._

"I wasn't looking for one when I came here, but this place truly became my home. This goes beyond mere obligation. So yes, Naruto, I am home." Some days, it was almost like having his clan back. Almost.

Naruto got that. He really did. He could hear the emotion in his friend's voice, could see it in the faint glint in the eyes he used to consider inscrutable. Was glad for it, even. And yet...

Huh. Maybe he really was selfish where Sasuke was concerned, because he just couldn't accept that. "I don't believe you. Konoha was never your home? No way! You were born there! You grew up there! We... " he shook his head, dropping whatever he was about to say. "Everyone loved you! The kids our age admired you! Even the grown-ups adored you! How could you just abandon all of them? Those people... I don't get it!"

"And I could never understand why the fuck you care so much about them – **you** of all people!" Sasuke could feel his control fraying, and decided to let it, allowing his emotions free reign for the first time this entire shitty day. Harsh seemed to be their best way of communicating with each-other anyway, and better he lose his cool now with his friend than later with the hokage. "The citizens of Konoha... **Those** people... The people that hated you for literally no reason! That would abuse a child because they always need **someone** to hate, someone to blame, regardless of sense or logic, that they would latch on to the flimsiest excuse to justify it... Why do you care so much about them? They sure never earned it from you!"

"They are good people! They were scared, and I really can't blame them. Sure, they made mistakes – but so did you! They don't feel that way anymore, they..."

"They feel entitled to achievements you made **despite** of them, as if they were **because** of them!" Now that he finally started, Sasuke couldn't seem to stop, "Tell me, Naruto, did any one of them so much as apologized for their treatment of you? Did any of them even acknowledge what they did? Or did they act like nothing happened? Like who you are and who you were are two completely different people with no connection between them?"

Naruto took a deep breath, torn between the warmth in his heart at someone feeling so incensed for him and the need to defend those he couldn't help but view as 'his'. "They're not perfect. No one is. But I don't need them to apologize. I don't want them to, anyway. I'd just feel weird." and it was true. Besides, "And it wasn't so bad, anyway. I had Teuchi-san and Ayame-chan, that were always nice to me and gave me free ramen every once in a while. And Iruka-sensei was like a dad, even if he is kinda young, and I could always tell he cared, even when he was yelling at me. And hokage ji-ji always made time for me, even though I know now how busy he probably was, and cheered me up, and was as much a grandfather to me as he was to Konohamaru!"

"Yeah... the third... I'm sorry, Naruto, but to me it still sounds like too little too late." The way he saw it, Naruto never would have needed to hold on to so little in the first place if it wasn't for the third hokage. That law prohibiting anyone from directly speaking of the Kyuubi combined with not telling him anything about his parents... Who was it protecting? Sure as hell wasn't Naruto.

It never actually kept anyone from treating the boy badly, never stopped them from calling him a demon or monster, only kept the child from understanding **why**. Only kept those who knew better and may have wanted to come to help from being able to do so, from explaining the truth to those who were ignorant. And the fourth hokage was dead. What good was his son as a political bargaining chip? What was he to the leaders of Konoha that any other child of the village wasn't, when you took his father out of the equation? If anything, a jinchuriki held much more value to Konoha's enemies – a fact that was more widely known. If anything, the villagers may have been less harsh with him had they known of his parentage, if only out of respect for the fourth. _Never mind how you would feel, had you been allowed to know._

"It was his decisions that made you grow up alone and hated. He had allowed me – and even Kakashi, before – to keep living in the house we had found our dead parents in. Konoha talks big. They like to lord their moral high-ground over the other nations. In reality, they have worse skeletons than all the rest – they just bury them instead of shoving them in a closet and shoot the undertaker for good measure."

Sasuke stopped in his tirade to take a deep breath and look at Naruto. He could tell that he had gone too far. He couldn't help it. Like in his confrontation with Orochimaru, he had kept those feelings so tightly locked, that once the chance finally came to release them it was hard to stop. Still... He knew that no matter what he was told, no matter how aware he was of the truth, for some unfathomable reason Naruto would always love those people. It is just the kind of person he is. And now, with Oto, Sasuke thought he could finally understand a little of it. The other's capacity to forgive will forever stomp him – he could not even completely forgive his brother – but the devotion to a place, to a people... he got it.

So he tried to gentle the blow a little, not liking how quiet Naruto had gotten any more than the angry tears refusing to fall from his eyes; "Do you know how Konoha came to be? Or rather, why?"

The change seemed to give Naruto whiplash. Sasuke didn't really blame him. "What?"

"The village. To make a long and complicated story short, Konoha was founded for its children." To give them a better life than they had during the warring clans era. To keep them from dying much too young. From knowing any pain at all... Sasuke was surprised when he first learned of it and his own clan's role in the village's founding. It was a noble cause. A dream not so different from his own feelings when building the Children's House. But the execution... "Somewhere along the way, someone forgot. The village we grew up in – it just didn't deliver on what it promised.

"And that's okay. Because I honestly believe the fifth hokage is trying to better it. And I **know** that you will, no trying required, once you step up as sixth. But I don't think that I could ever live there." Not after everything. Not even if Oto was not so important to him. He knew that if he were to tell his friend just some of the things he now knew of Konoha, it would have broken Naruto's heart. So he won't.

But his message was still clear. _I'm never coming back there the way you want me to, so you had better stop trying._

"But..." Naruto sniffled. What Sasuke told him was painful. Naruto wasn't so naive anymore. He knew no shinobi village was pristine, and intention did not always translate well into practice. So instead, he focused on the resentment Sasuke seemed to hold for Konoha, his apparent anger toward them on Naruto's own behalf as well as his own, on his claims that the village that meant so much to Naruto was of no consequence to himself... he wondered why Konoha was the village he decided to reach out to at all.

It felt like too much too soon. Like his very soul was somersaulting and banging back and fourth ever since he "found" Sasuke. By now, Naruto was emotionally drained. He had no idea how he pictured their meeting – but it wasn't this roller-coaster, for sure. He was too exhausted, too spent, to avoid what really bothered him, anymore.

"And us? Kakashi-sensei, Sakura-chan... me. You said we could have been your home... but you still left us. You left me. Why? The last time we met it was like talking to an iceberg. You even said you didn't care if I lived or died. How could you do that? How could you leave us just like that?" he was shouting again. Funny. He didn't think he had it in him anymore... "How could you make us think you are dead? Sakura-chan actually mourned you, you bastard! And Kakashi-sensei looks even more depressed when he thinks we aren't looking! And I... I felt like I was loosing my mind! Because I knew it! I knew it! I knew it, dattebayo! A part of me always just **knew** you are alive but everyone kept acting like I'm lying to myself. Sometimes I wished I was! Because it felt like you just abandoned me again, and this time for **nothing** , and that felt even worse!" He was sobbing now, the last of the tirade coming as almost a whisper, his voice chocked with tears and emotion: "You were my best and first friend, Sasuke. A brother I really looked up to. And you just left me to deal with it alone, where no one else could ever understand. You left..."

Sasuke blinked, eyes and expression full of remorse. He wanted to go over there and hold him, but... but that wasn't them. They were never like that. Physical comfort just wasn't something they **did**. Not with each other. But he could feel his heart constricting. He hated seeing the stubbornly happy tornado that was Naruto so subdued. And to know the fault was his...

"I'm sorry, Naruto. I truly am." and Naruto could hear the honesty, but it wasn't nearly enough. "I told you – it was never about you. I'm probably just making it worse... but I really don't know how else to put it. Back then... when we last met... I wouldn't have killed you." _With the weather that day, kirin wouldn't have done much damage if it didn't hit you directly – and it wouldn't have. I just knew you could never follow where I was going – I didn't want you to._

"It wasn't a whim. You were right – when I left Konoha I could have killed you. I even had a reason to. Had I killed you – I would have awakened the mangekyo sharingan years earlier." Naruto stared at him in shock. He never knew... suddenly, what Sasuke told him when verbally admitting their friendship for the first time ever made a bit more sense. "But other than not wanting to achieve power the way he did... the gain just wasn't worth the price. Never will be. I say it now, that these eyes are among my greatest assets. If I could keep from ever having them – I would.

"After I... after we fought, me and him... I learned something. Between that and everything else... I hadn't thought of you, but I hadn't thought about much at all." _Back then, most of the time, I tried to keep from thinking. And then... then I had this place. I had a home I cared for, and emerging back to the world would have only caused more harm than good._

"I always planned to tell you eventually, but I didn't want to risk this alliance. I never imagined you will be one of those sent here, though I probably should have. But I never meant to cause you pain. I never thought it would."

Naruto took a deep breath and closed his eyes as he allowed the words to sink in. They weren't done here, but he felt it was alright. Things will work themselves out. Right now, they mostly needed time.


	11. Resolutions

**AN:** Mostly some background flashbacks, and a look into Sasuke's initial decision that set him on this path and some of his mental state after the revelation of his brother's reasoning. Do note that there are a few lines here - mainly in conversation- that had been taken from the anime and only altered where needed. Hope you enjoy.

* * *

 **Chapter 10: Resolutions**

Sasuke had been sitting on the encircling mountain that bordered Oto, looking at his village spread before him. The conversation with Naruto had been hard, and only a single step of many. He didn't regret the actions that led to the revelation of his identity to his past peers, but he wasn't ready for it just yet. He could only hope this new development will not cause a problem. They couldn't afford to lose Konoha's regard now, and time was also running short. If he were the reason this treaty failed, he will never forgive himself.

Or Konoha.

The things he had told Naruto also brought him back to the past, memories in the back of his mind had been rising nearer the surface ever since. Some were of their childhood – from the academy to their team to arguments and worse battles. But none of those were at the forefront. Instead, the time that stood out to him most of all did not contain Naruto at all. Instead, it was the time of the only decisions he had yet to regret, right after he first allowed himself to truly mourn his brother.

It was the last time he personally saw his last surviving blood-relative.

 _Sasuke sat atop the giant bones of an unidentifiable creature in Akatsuki's hideout, staring at the full moon and thinking over his life when "Madara" approached him. To be perfectly honest, he had expected the older Uchiha to lose patience with him much earlier. Could it be that he was giving him time to mourn his brother, and come to terms both with his death and the recent revelations regarding his clan's demise, or was he just that confident Sasuke will play into his hand? The latter was more likely, of course, but Sasuke was done walking anyone's pre-paved road. He had done so long enough already, and it clearly lead nowhere good._

 _"What are you doing?" The tone of his voice was exasperated, almost scolding, like an adult dealing with a child whose antics he was already fed up with. Sasuke didn't care. It had never mattered to him what anyone thought of his choices, even those whose opinion he generally valued, and had no intention of starting now for a man he just met and cared nothing for. But he wasn't stupid, and had learned caution and patience since his genin days in Konoha. He knew he couldn't fight him; he was still wounded, unused to both the lack of the curse mark and the gain of the mangekyo, and knew nothing of the masked man's true skills and abilities. He will have to tread lightly, carefully, to insure that he and his team can safely leave this place._

 _His answer was an honest one, but he made sure to keep his voice somewhere between detached and nostalgic, divulging nothing of his true feelings or intentions: "When I look upon the full moon, it takes me back to that night… as well as the memories I've been trying to forget. Now I can finally recall things about Itachi, faint memories buried deep in my heart that are floating back to the surface." He paused before continuing, allowing only a fraction of the grief he felt to enter his voice. "He was crying. I thought I had imagined it. I didn't realize… It seems what you told me of that night was true."_

 _"So what will you do? Will you avenge Itachi? Or follow his plan, crawling back to Konoha?"_

 _Sasuke sighed, half-honest, half selling the semblance of confidence, a lost youth consulting an older family member: "I can't do as Itachi wished me to do." Already, he saw "Madara" straightening his back, felt the very air around him almost vibrate in victory. Time to dash that. Gently, of course… he refrained from smirking, though the urge was there, keeping his tone on the verge of apologetic: "But I find that I can't move against that accursed village, either._

 _"Itachi had given his life – in every sense of the phrase – for the protection of that place. It only stands to reason, then, that there was something in it that he deemed worth protecting. Destroying that, whatever it may be, will disregard everything he had suffered and done, and doing so in **his** name will be a blow worse than any other. He did what he thought best to try and keep me safe. Misguided or not, I can't simply disregard that. It would feel like spitting on his grave._

" _But I also cannot share the devotion he felt just because he had felt it. I can't forgive that village, the leaders who would give such orders or the people that will allow such leadership. I don't even think it would change much in their minds if the villagers were to find out what I did. I could never live in that village, let alone serve it, and I believe that my brother's hopes overwhelmed his intellect to believe that that was ever possible at this stage. Even had you not told me anything, even if I tried to go back there, why would I be allowed? Because Naruto would annoy them into accepting me back if only to stop his nagging? I would have never been trusted again, and it may well have served to justify the old prejudices further._

 _"So while I won't simply attack Konoha, I won't go back or help it either."_

 _"The question remains, then: what **will** you do? It appears you have exhausted your options… or will you come after me, instead? You already know I had aided your brother, after all." The masked man was coiled for a confrontation. Sasuke knew this was the crucial moment. The way he phrased this answer will determine if this was to be his last day alive. _

_Truly, he didn't care so much. He never expected to survive the battle against his brother anyway – his only hope being to take Itachi down with him – and between the sudden lifting of his sole purpose for the past eight years, the shaking of all he had believed in and the sense of aimlessness starting to grow in him he did not really mind his life ending. But he was not here alone, and his life will not be the only one to end. Hebi had followed him without needing to, supported him even now… they did not deserve to die for his mistakes._

 _"Do you know the worst thing my brother did that night? The only one I truly could never forgive?" He did not wait for the other to guess, answering almost immediately: "It wasn't that he killed our clan or even our parents... He killed my brother." The mask tilted to the side, and Sasuke got the impression an eyebrow was rising under it. He smiled, though there was no happiness in the gesture. "That night, the same monster that killed everyone I knew… everyone I cared about… and forced me to relive it, killed the gentle and caring brother that raised me. Not only that, but he had made sure to ruin every memory I had left of him, to make me doubt all I knew of him. And then he went on wearing that dead brother's face, sullying his name, using him to do things he never would have done, destroying whatever was still left of him…" He couldn't keep the bitter anger from his voice anymore, but that was alright._

 _"He killed him – but I couldn't even mourn his death. After all, wasn't he still alive? I hated the monster, but I can admit now that I loved my brother still, and I hated that I loved him, so I hated him more. It couldn't end, not until the body joined the soul in death, and I think **that** is what Kakashi and everyone else just didn't get. And he must have known at least some of that himself, if he truly meant for his death to awaken my mangekyo, as you said. After all, those eyes will never come without heartache, without real grief, and that is only possible with love._

 _"There was no one I loved more than my brother. I would have forgiven him everything, our clan, our parents, even forcing me to see it. But he took away **my brother**. And you brought him back to me. So no, I will not stand against you for vengeance, though I had intended to." It was probably the first outright lie he had ever told… but it was far in the future and he had the feeling other reasons will show themselves before that time came. For now, the lie was necessary. _

_"As to your question... I need to understand. Like I said, my brother saw **something** that was worth his protection, something that I cannot, however much I try. I want to know what that is. If Itachi was fooled, if he gave himself for nothing other than lies… there is a possibility I won't be able to ignore Konoha, after all. If an afterlife exists, I will just have to apologies to him there, and if it doesn't… well then, no harm done, right?_

 _"There are also some things he said to me during that battle that start to feel like they have hidden meaning. Maybe they are half truths, or veiled truths or completely meaningless, said for effect only. I don't know, but my whole life my eyes were kept closed so my feet were lead by others. They lead me here. I can't keep moving blindly. So if 'truth' is a matter of perception, I want to know what Itachi's 'truth' had been. I want to see as much as I can of the area before turning on the crossroad when taking my next step. I want information, and I plan on getting it. Beyond that… I honestly don't know. As you noticed before – I had never planned for this."_

 _"Madara" nodded. "In that case, you should join the Akatsuki. If you require resources or intel we have the reach to provide it. We are family, after all, who better to ask for aid? Besides, wherever you turn there bound to be hardships. It is simply a shinobi's life. With Akatsuki you will have the power to overcome whatever they may be. I'll even give you a bijuu."_

 _"Bijuu?"_

 _"You don't know about them? They're chakra monsters. Originally, the first hokage collected several of them and kept them under his control. When the threat of a great war arose, the hokage Hashirama used them to maintain the power balance and distributed them to other lands, starting with the five great nations as proof of alliances or agreements. You could call them the ultimate chakra weapons."_

Kyuubi, huh? Naruto… _"And what will I do with a bijuu? Besides, you seem to misunderstand me. I do not intend to work with you any more than I plan on returning to Konoha. After all, you massacred the Uchiha along with Itachi, and unlike him didn't do so under pressure or a greater cause. In fact, you yourself stated that you killed them simply because you wanted to. As grateful as I am for what you told me, I still can't just ignore or forgive that so easily. Like Konoha, the most that I can offer you is indifference. I may not stand against you, but I also won't stand beside you. As for the information I seek… I thank you for the offer, but I know where to find all the knowledge anyone could ever need. Surly, something of what I seek will be there as well."_

 _"You intend to leave, then."_

 _"I do. There is only one thing I would ask of you: I want bury Itachi."_

 _"Will you transplant his eyes?" the voice was cautious again, suspicious. But that was easy. He still felt disturbed chills at the thought, blindness or not, and never imagined he could just walk away with **that** , anyway._

 _"No. He had given enough to protect me already. I will just have to find another way to avoid the side-effects, or be mindful of using the mangekyo. It is time I stood on my own."_

 _For a long time the older Uchiha didn't answer, clearly considering something very carefully. Sasuke didn't know what it was, but he would hazard a guess it had something to do with his brother's eyes. Eventually though, he conceded._

 _And when the black flames of the funeral pyre died down, and nothing was left of his brother for anyone to exploit ever again, Sasuke and his team left the hideout._

* * *

 _Between the four of them, the list of Orochimaru's bases was dauntingly long, but if information on the history (and dirt) of Konoha could be found anywhere outside the village itself – it was here. It was in one of the more populated hideouts that Sasuke first realized the greater implications of his last actions in Oto. He had killed Orochimaru - these people's tormentor, but their leader as well - and left. Sure, some he had Suigetsu free, some have escaped on their own... but then what? He saw it when he came for Juugo, the anarchy of a breached prison filled with monsters, the death that came with it and with the rage of stolen lives. But it was only now that any of that sank in._

 _This was on him. He may not have kidnapped these people, may not have harmed them directly, but he was the one who removed any semblance of order. It was **him** that gave them freedom without purpose, killed their tyrant without presenting an alternative. A high-pitched scream turned his attention to a small child, perhaps six years old, cowering with his back to a rock, about to be hit by a woman with a level 1 curse mark caught in a psychotic rage. He didn't even notice activating tsukuyomi to restrain her until he already had, and the entire scene froze._

 _For a long time now, he felt himself sinking and floating in turns. Ever since the death of his brother and the escape from the danger Akatsuki no doubt posed. His team had helped ease it some; Juugo's quiet support and peaceful presence, Karin's subtle care and quiet contact (and it still surprised him she was capable of quiet **anything** , especially after learning she is an **Uzumaki** ) and Suigetsu's casual ribbing and sarcasm. Hell, even Karin and Suigetsu's over-the-top shouting matches were a welcome reprieve. He was aimless, without a goal, the pride of his clan that had been there his entire life shaken, full of regret and remorse that could never be alleviated or rectified… Not for the first time since the reality of the massacre truly hit him, he was wondering why he was even alive at all._

 _But now, standing in a semi-battlefield atop desecrated earth, it hit him. **This** was his purpose. Suddenly, he felt like he could breathe again._

Somehow, they had managed to form a real community out of that chaos. Somehow, through all of their efforts, they had created something that was terribly precious to Sasuke. They are so close to making it even better.

And now there is the chance of losing that opportunity.

There was no avoiding the hokage. That much is fact. But he will make sure the agreement is signed. He didn't think of her as so petulant that merely his identity would deter her, but if she is... He wasn't above using less honorable measures.

Hopefully, though, such will not be necessary.


	12. An End and New Beginnings

**Chapter 11: An End and New Beginnings**

Tsunade was packing the last of her things, getting ready for the return journey to Konoha the next morning. If there was a bit of unwarranted aggression to her movements, she didn't think anyone would blame her. Even though she hadn't known Sasuke before his desertion, it was enough to see the sadness in her apprentices' faces to be angry at him. For a long time, she truly resented the teen, and even now, in a dark corner of her heart, she wished to hurt him as he had "her" kids.

But she wasn't such an unfeeling person as to doom innocents for the actions of a misguided child. Besides, by now... _Damn that Uchiha!_ Damn him for actually earning her respect! She couldn't even resent him properly anymore!

The treaty had been signed the previous evening, followed by what could only be described as a small-scale festival, and the Konoha delegation's business here was over. The work itself wasn't, of course; she still needed to organize the medics and seal-masters to be sent here as part of the agreement, as well as pose Sasuke's request for a summit with all five kage to the council. As things stood, she would be surprised if it will happen without his actual presence.

He agreed – visibly reluctant – but asked to be kept away from Danzo. He refused to elaborate, but knowing the man she was hardly surprised. Sasuke clearly had access to all kinds of restricted information he really shouldn't have. Tsunade, now aware of at least some of his spy network, wondered if she needs to start exterminating snakes.

Of course, it could just be Danzo's past attempt to assassinate him...

A knock sounded at the door and, with the rest of her party absent, Tsunade had gone to open it. She was admittedly surprised at the visit, as there was no reason to fetch them anywhere anymore, and any of her own people would have just walked in, the door left unbolted for this exact reason.

She didn't know whether to be more or less surprised when it was Karin who entered.

"Hokage-sama, I was wondering if I could ask you for a personal favor? As a medic?" Tsunade nodded, looking at Karin curiously. They may not have known each other very long, but it was definitely the first time she had seen the normally assertive woman being so hesitant, and it didn't sit right. And considering all the previous times she was sidetracked since arriving in this village… she was fairly certain she didn't want to know. But things went surprisingly well, all in all, and she would be leaving soon.

And this was rather intriguing…

Karin took a deep breath, seeming to become herself again, and – as they were alone – took a seat and started talking. "I know that Sasuke told you of Oto's… unique affliction. I myself have never been touched by Orochimaru, really – probably the only one – but there have been… other things." Another deep breath and her eyes became so piercing so suddenly that the doctor nearly got whiplash, "Now, this does **not** leave this room, alright? I am from the Uzumaki clan, one of the escapees of Uzushio, though I was far too young to remember much of it. Back then, before meeting Orochimaru, my parents and I were granted sanctuary in Kusa."

 _The way she said "sanctuary", you'd think it a curse word…_ But Tsunade did not voice her thought, letting the girl say her piece. This will not be good, she was sure of it.

"You must know about the great chakra reserves my clan is famous for. Well, we can… lets say… donate from it, under certain conditions. And the price my parents had to pay for a home was just that. Our chakra. It killed my mother, and when she died…" Karin lifted the edge of her sleeve, revealing several, glaring, too-prominent bite marks, "when my mother died, they forced the task on me." Through the entire story, the proud, almost challenging, glint of her eyes hadn't left. With her next words, however, something in them changed. Not dimmed, per se, but shifted. "I was young, not yet a teen. I am no medic – at least not yet – but I do know some basics, and I know this could not have helped my development. Under Orochimaru's "care", I held a semblance of authority. I was relatively well-off, and in a position of power, of sorts. My sensing became my most valuable talent, but the biting hasn't stopped either. Not until the reshaping of Oto.

"Last year… I lost my baby. I don't even know if my daughter or my son – it was too soon to tell – but it nearly broke us. I want to know just how bad things are, and – if at all possible – I want it fixed, and I want no one to know about it that doesn't have to. So I guess, what I'm asking for here is your discretion."

"I see." said Tsunade, taking it all in. She knew that the Uzumaki clan had scattered almost everywhere when their village fell, but it hurt to hear what some of them had to go through to survive. _If only we were not so late… they could have been spared this…_ "Very well, though you should not even ask. Doctor-patient confidentiality and all. I must ask, however, what about your husband..? Boyfriend..? The father of the child? Do you wish to keep him in the dark as well? If you will need treatment you could also use some support."

"He'll just worry, and he already worries enough. Last year… it nearly killed him but he kept both of us functioning. Besides, I don't want to give him false hope if nothing will come of it, and I don't want to discuss it. It is **my** decision, and that's that."

"Alright. Stand up, please. I can do a preliminary scan right now."

Tsunade allowed the healing chakra to envelope her hands in a diagnostic jutsu. The scan itself was simple - the trick being in correctly interpreting the information received through it - and what she saw… was atrocious. "This… is not good. You are probably right in the reason as well. To put it bluntly – your less used chakra pathways are not as they should be, and especially so around your womb. They are underdeveloped, narrow, and disconnected at some points. Most likely, the strain put on them so early on caused their development to be inhibited in those areas your body, at the time, had considered less necessary."

"And?" If Karin had any reaction to this news, she wasn't showing it. "Can something be done to make them develop now that they **are** necessary?"

Tsunade pursed her lips. She was almost reluctant to say this, already guessing the girl's answer and dreading what she was about to be put through. But this was part of the job, and she was obligated to be frank. She didn't **always** like being an iryo-nin, and this was one of those other times, but it could not be helped. Heaving a rather loud sigh, she stated: "There is a possibility, yes. However, let me warn you that it is an extremely slim one. What's more, succeed or fail the process is going to be painful, straining, difficult and in no way comfortable. Even in the best possible outcome, the chance of a miscarriage will still be there, with the additional risk of your own life. Any pregnancy you might have will be a high-risk one that will need to be very closely monitored, and in no way comfortable. Basically, you will be putting yourself through hell."

Karin smiled. It wasn't very happy, but she did not look sad. Resignation mixed with relief, perhaps? "I'm hardly new to pain, Tsunade-sama, and it never once crossed my mind that this will be easy in any way. Trust me, I can deal with hardships. If anything, this is better than I'd expected."

"The procedure will be long. It will take months at the very least, and we are talking about forcing foreign chakra into you to aggressively induce the widening and expansion of the network. The treatment alone could kill you if not done correctly."

"I understand, and that is exactly why I don't want anyone else knowing about it – they will never let me. But I have had a long time to think about this. Ever since… well, there wasn't much time when I **hadn't** thought about this, and all I care about is that there is a chance. Besides," she smirked, "I highly doubt whoever you clear for this will perform the procedure incorrectly…"

"I really can't talk you out of it, can I?" She heaved another sigh. Tsunade hated being away from her sake now more than ever. "Very well. I will be sending my apprentice and best medic – along with two or three others – for the instruction program we have agreed on as part of the treaty. With your permission, I will let her – and only her, I promise – know of your situation so she can personally see to you. Anyone other than her or myself will simply not do." Karin nodded her permission, and rose to leave, but was stopped by Tsunade's next sentence. "I do advise you, however, to tell **someone**. Preferably your partner, but at least a friend. Someone. **Any** one. You will need a lot of support to get through this. At least give it some more thought. Don't make it even worse on yourself just out of stubbornness."

Karin made no audible answer, just left.

* * *

Naruto had shown up early at Sasuke's doorstep, challenging him to a sparring match. Sasuke accepted. Now, already past noon, it was like no time had passed at all since their childhood. They stuck purely to taijutsu, and the more blows exchanged the more of a personal understanding was reached, until they were back to their old rhythm, trading insults and goading at irregular intervals.

Everything wasn't fixed yet, and there were hurdles yet to come, but for now no hard feelings lingered, and that was enough. Eventually, they called for a rest, lying next to each other in the tall grass. "You will come to visit at least, right?" Naruto asked.

Sasuke didn't really want to. He knew, however, that he will likely be forced to show up in Konoha from time to time, if only for diplomatic purposes. So he just said "We'll see. You can show up whenever too, you know. Not like I'm going anywhere." Naruto smiled, though he recognized the evasion for what it was. No worries. He will wear his friend's stubbornness down in no time! He began by regaling Sasuke with stories of everything he missed – his awesomeness at the fore, of course – while the other just listened, content to let the dobe carry an entire conversation on his own.

He had to talk way too much these past few weeks, anyway.

* * *

In a different corner of the village, a much more silent pair sat looking at the clear water of a calm lake. Words were exchanged rarely, noting an interesting anecdote regarding life and the creatures living it, or wondering about notions more hypothetical than practical. Those would cause a long contemplative silence, before an answer or argument will finally be presented.

It surprised both of them, the ease with which they found an accord. Both Shino and Juugo were used to being surrounded by more vocal friends – even if they both had more subdued companions as well – and as such often went unnoticed. As for their more philosophical musings, it was rare enough for those to be met with more than a strange look, and being able to really share and even debate them was... nice. This will be their last meeting in a long time, and so they have decided to make the most of it, basking in the silence and breaking it only when necessary.

* * *

It was a beautiful morning, and the scent of pine strong in the air. The small party was standing just outside of Oto's gates, bidding final farewells of new friends and old acquaintances.

"Teme! Don't you dare not write, you hear me? I swear I'll come right back to beat you up if you do!"

"Hn."

Naruto fumed at the non-answer, though he knew it was basically a yes, and Kakashi's eye smiled. "I think he is on speech-withdrawal, Naruto. Be understanding." Sasuke glared at his former teacher.

At their side, Shino and Juugo nodded at each other in a last greeting, and Tsunade sent Karin a more discreet nod. Finally, Sasuke turned to the hokage: "Oto is glad for the new accord between us and Konoha. You are always welcome here; the seal will no longer hide this place from you and yours, even as it does others."

The hokage nodded. "The delegates will be here soon. Make sure the hospital is ready." After a beat she added, "I still don't like you, Uchiha." She got a smirk for her troubles. _Damn him!_

Shortly after, the Konoha party turned and began their journey back to their village. It will be just as long as the trip over but, Tsunade smiled as she looked at the animated Naruto, much more lighthearted.


	13. Sakura

**Chapter 12: Sakura**

Sakura sat on the bench in a newly rebuilt part of the village and stared at the sky. To an outsider, she would have been reminiscent of a Nara lazily staring at clouds in a moment of serenity. But looks were deceiving, and she felt anything but. In her head, Sakura's thoughts were racing in such turmoil she could barely keep up.

 _"Sakura, see me in the office in an hour, please."_

She could not remember a time, when speaking to her shishou had left her emotions so jumbled and her mind so confused.

It started mildly enough. Tsunade had let her know that the envoy to Oto went far better than expected – something she was already aware of via a letter Shizune showed her half-way through their stay there – and that an agreement had been reached and signed. It became clear why she was being told when Tsunade informed her she was to lead a group of medics to the new village as part of it, as well as of a patient she was to care for personally. Though apprehensive, Sakura trusted her dear teacher more than enough to know there was no danger. Tsunade would never send her anywhere she believed she might be harmed, nor was she someone easily fooled. Even so, she will be living there for some months at least, away from her boyfriend, friends and family, with only a few colleagues as familiar faces.

And she couldn't help the shiver in her body at so much as hearing the word 'Oto', unable not to be reminded of Orochimaru. Of her meetings with him. Of what she and her team lost to him.

But she was a medic, and it was clear in her shishou's piercing eyes these people needed her help. Orochimaru was dead, Oto was now an ally, and she was no longer a frightened little girl. Sakura was a strong kunoichi, and one of the two best iryo-nin in the whole shinobi world. So, she just gave a single resolute nod of ascent and was about to excuse herself to begin preparations for her departure, when Tsunade's next words stopped her. _"before you go there, however, there is something you should know..."_

And that's when her world got flipped on its head. Again.

Sasuke was alive. Sasuke was perfectly fine. Sasuke... was Taka.

Sasuke was alive.

It took so long to come to terms with his death... she was somewhat stuck on the confirmation of his life.

They kept searching for a long time after he had killed Itachi, after the last shred of rumor regarding him had completely dried up. Then, when Pain attacked and Naruto pulled a Naruto and made him change his mind mid-catastrophe, her teammate came back with the information that erased their last hypothesis as to his whereabouts, as well. Sasuke was **not** with Akatsuki. They hadn't seen or heard anything from him as long as Konoha hadn't. And according to Pain – or Nagato, as his real name apparently was – he wasn't in a good state when he left. He hadn't elaborated much before dying, but it sounded like he wasn't doing too well emotionally and mentally, and he still was physically wounded – though nothing life threatening. It was clear he doubted he survived if he hadn't come back to Konoha.

And with almost two years of absolute nothing... it was hard not to feel the same.

Slowly but surely, the total extinction of the Uchiha clan had established itself as fact ever since the last failed retrieval. Their classmates stopped wondering about Sasuke, sending her and Naruto half-sympathetic half-pitying looks when they did. Kakashi got an even more troubled expression whenever he thought they weren't looking. And now, with this, it hit Sakura as well. Sasuke was dead. He had to be. It was time to stop lying to herself.

For the first few days, she couldn't stop crying. Whenever Naruto tried to cheer her up, whenever it became clear he still clang to hope and tried to bring it back to her as well, she couldn't keep from exploding. It only tore her heart worse, seeing him stuck in the bubble of optimism she burst from around herself. Naruto, as well, refused to hear anything that opposed his point of view.

Soon, it became a taboo subject between them. Naruto will not mention bringing him back to her anymore. Sakura will not speak to him of the pain she felt at his ultimate loss.

But she had to speak with **someone**. Naruto was no longer an option, and Kakashi had never been one for heart-to-hearts nor did she want to make his own pain worse. Tsunade and Shizune never knew him and their classmates just barely. Her parents didn't like Sasuke – or her infatuation with him – on sheer principle due to how much his leaving hurt her, nor could they, as civilians, understand the bond between shinobi teammates. She tried to speak to Ino, her best friend, but even she wasn't much help. Sakura could see that she tried, not dismissing her feelings and even understanding some of the loss she felt after what happened to Asuma, but she could see her patience was running thin. Sakura could hear what she wasn't saying: _"You lost him five years ago. Aren't you used to it already?"_ So Sakura sucked in her pain, and stopped talking to her about it.

And then there was Lee.

She remembered sitting on a rock outside their makeshift field-hospital, taking a short break and watching the nearby construction. She was still unsure what it was about her. If she was crying without realizing it, or just giving a general air of gloom... but she knew she was feeling that familiar pain again, as always when her mind didn't have better things to do. Whatever it was, though, something clearly showed, because suddenly there was a shadow over her, and a very close "Sakura-chan? Are you okay?"

Looking up, she saw Lee; complete with bushy eyebrows and green spandex and waaay too many timbers in his arms. His beaming smile wasn't present, though, for the first time since she met him. Instead, he looked... worried. For her? Inexplicably, she felt bad.

"Lee-kun... I'm fine, I'm fine. Don't worry! Helping with construction? These look heavy..."

Lee answered her tremulous smile with a beam. "Of course, Sakura-chan! Even if our houses are in ruins, Konoha's youthful spirit remains! To prove that, I will carry 100 timbers for our youthful builders!"

"I see..."

He blinked at her subdued reaction, then added "It is almost noon, so they will probably have a break soon... let me deposit those and we can spend this lovely springtime hour together!" and without waiting for a response, he sped off to the building where work was currently underway. _How can he run so fast with this much weight?_

True to his word, Lee came rocketing back in no time at all, and sat by her side. For a while, they didn't speak. Just sat there in a comfortable silence, non-intrusive and unassuming. Eventually, he said, "Sakura-chan, you know you can tell me what's troubling you, right? Such a youthful flower should never be upset." For once, his compliment made her feel touched rather than awkward, and she tried to smile. She wasn't sure if she succeeded. Still, they didn't know each other all that well, and to talk to him about **this** of all topics... "I'm fine, Lee. Really. Just thinking too much, is all."

"It's about him, isn't it? Sasuke-kun?"

She turned to him, startled. She had no idea what to say, but her mouth seemed to move anyway; "That... That's not... I mean..."

Lee smiled at her. It was a different smile than his regular one, gentler, but just as sincere. "You shouldn't apologize about it, Sakura-chan. He was your teammate, right? Even if you hadn't seen him for a long time... even if things weren't always the best for you... it still can't be easy. Right?"

Now, Sakura knew she was crying. But there was relief mixed with the pain and the sadness. It was like a dam bursting open. She just started talking, not even thinking about her words before spilling them. And Lee... Lee listened. And he answered her worries as best he was able, not patronizing or humoring her, but really thinking his statements through. And he cheered her up, a bit, with small jokes or just his own over-the-top personality.

And before long, he became her best confidant, whenever anything troubled her, big or small.

And before she knew it, she realized she started falling in love with him.

And with that realization, came another – she was never in love with Sasuke.

Oh, her pain was real. Both at his leaving and his death. The sadness and hurt in her heart were in no way false, and they were no less today than they were yesterday. She loved Sasuke. Loved him just as she loves Naruto. But she was never **in** love with him. She never felt **this**. It was a schoolgirl's infatuation she was too stubborn to let go of, and lacked the experience to recognize changing when it did.

Lee said something – she couldn't remember what – and she laughed. It was small, more a giggle than full out laughter – but it was her first in a long time. And looking up at him, she couldn't help but smile. The hole in her heart was still there, but she knew she will be alright. She had her whole life, still. And she had him.

A few weeks after, Rock Lee was seen running 50 laps around Konoha on his pinkies after Sakura asked him out.

She had come so far since then, it was hard to believe this all happened barely a year ago. She still missed Sasuke, but she had made peace with his death. Accepted it.

And now it turns out he isn't dead. More than that – she is going to have to face him soon. Work with him. Hell, for all intents and purposes, she will be his **subordinate** , however temporarily.

Saying she felt conflicted about all that was putting it mildly.

"Sakura-chan!"

Looking to the road ahead, she saw Naruto speeding towards her, his excited smile and general enthusiasm the same as when they were twelve.

"Hi, Naruto!" she said, smiling herself, "We didn't have a chance to talk since you got back. How was it, being all serious diplomat? Make any scenes?" It was something of a running gag between all their friends ever since Naruto showed up from his first "hokage training session" complaining about how boring it all was. He wasn't any less keen on the position, though mildly disillusioned from his childhood fantasies, and his friends had no doubt he will be one of the greatest – if most unorthodox – hokage in the village's history, but the teasing was just too fun to resist. Seriously, could anyone picture **Naruto** of all people sitting in an office all day, signing documents and presiding over meetings, carefully picking and choosing his words, and keep a straight face? Not anyone who met him, that's for sure!

"Hilarious, Sakura-chan. I'll have you know my diplomatic face was awesome, dattebayo! I didn't fall asleep once! No matter how boring it got! If anyone sucks at being diplomatic, it's that teme! Um... baa-chan told you... right?"

The last sentence was said in normal-volume – practically a whisper on the Naruto-scale – and Sakura turned away from him and just nodded, a small hum of ascent escaping her lips as she was thrust right back to her musings. After a few seconds of contemplative silence, she finally said "Guess you were right, huh?"

"You bet I was!" Naruto looked down then, a more wistful smile curling his lips in place of his previous exuberance. "There was no way he'd die on me. I'd feel it. I just **knew** I would." Sakura nodded once, and another few moments passed before he kept talking. "You okay, Sakura-chan? I know how pissed **I** was when I found out, so it can't be any easier for you."

She smiled at him. Some days, like today, she really had no idea what she would have done without Naruto in her life. He had become one of her closest friends, practically family... for all her brains, Sakura had to admit she was a pretty dumb child. Luckily, she outgrew that, and he outgrew his crush on her, making their interactions far easier. "I'm fine, Naruto. Really. It's just... a lot, you know. I mean... he's alive. And not our enemy. I guess... I'm still in shock, maybe? I don't think it really sank in yet..."

Naruto nodded. "Yeah, I get what you mean. I still don't know if I should hug him or hit him, and I already did both!" _Oh god, I wish I could have seen_ _ **that**_ _face..._ she thought. Even so...

"Isn't that the norm with you two, though? Ne, Naruto... how is he, really? I mean..."

"I know. He's fine. Still a bastard, obviously, even when he's trying to make a treaty with a more powerful village. But it's teme, you know? So he probably can't help being a dick like that..." Sakura giggled. "He's also still a vindictive asshole, but only when people really deserve it, so that's fine, I suppose... kinda weird seeing him get mobbed by a bunch of kids, though..."

"Huh?" she blinked. **That** sounded like an interesting story...

"It was weird, though..."

"What was?"

"There was no uchiwa anywhere, even after we knew who he was and he stopped with the stupid hood thing... I don't think he wears it anymore. And no one calls him by his last name, just Sasuke or Taka. I mean, sure, the place is pretty casual all around, but... it's just weird with him, you know?"

"I guess..." She had to agree it was a little weird. Sasuke used to take such pride in his clan – hell, he dedicated his entire life to avenging them! She couldn't remember him without that symbol, having worn it even while with Orochimaru... but did it really have to mean anything? Besides, that wasn't important. "So... you two are alright?"

"Yeah, I think so." he said, smiling. "I mean, it is still a little weird, and he changed a little, but... I think... maybe he's just happier? I don't know. It hurts that he doesn't want to come home, but..."

"Naruto, seriously? He **leads** another village and you tried to drag him back to Konoha?!" Sakura didn't know wither to face-palm or burst into hysterics, so for now, she settled on an incredulous stare.

"I'm sorry, it's a habit! And the whole leader thing isn't that official anyway! Besides it's instinctive by now – I see him I try to get him to come back – I can't help it!"

Laughter it is.

The conversation moved to other topics from there, Naruto telling her of the delegation as a whole and what Oto is like now, so she would know what to expect on her own mission, as she filled him in on what went on in the village while he was away. "Sai is WHAT?!" All in all, it was a nice afternoon.


	14. Faces New and Old

**Chapter 13: Faces New and Old**

It was not Sasuke who met them at the gates, as he was not currently in the village, though expected back that same day. Sakura wasn't sure what she thought of that. They were a little early – not expected until that evening, at least – so she wasn't annoyed or insulted. But Sasuke not being there meant the anxious bundle of nerves in her chest was still present, even as the ultimate confrontation with her erstwhile teammate was not upon her quite yet.

She – and the other three medics and two seal-masters with her – had been shown to a residence not far from the hospital and left to rest from their journey. They were given permission to do as they please for the time, and when Sakura asked if she could see the current state of the hospital – rooms, supplies and the like – she was surprised to learn no escort was needed. She could go at her convenience, and check on anything she found necessary. This was how, fed and bathed about two hours after their arrival, she found herself in the building she will spend most of the next few months in, moving through uninhabited rooms and scrutinizing half-stocked shelves. There was much still missing, and she couldn't help a small glare at yet another near-empty cabinet.

"We didn't have much beyond bandages and some herbs, so this has been a work in progress. The last of it should arrive by tomorrow, though." She didn't even need to turn. She recognized that emotionless voice. Had recognized it post-pubescence after three years of no contact. Compared to that, it hadn't changed much.

She was proven right when Sasuke stepped beside her with a long scroll. She watched him summon the supplies sealed in it – medicines, syringes, surgical instruments and the like – and start arranging them in the cabinet she was scrutinizing. Once finished, he turned to face her.

Sakura had been imagining this moment since she first learned this meeting would come. Both anticipating and dreading it, for weeks she has had scenarios running through her head of any possible outcome. Situations where he will be as cold to her as their last disastrous meeting, others where he will be completely professional as if they were strangers, ignore her, welcome her, or outright refuse to work with her. She had imagined herself hugging him, hitting him, screaming at him, giving **him** a cold shoulder – hell even her feinting was on the table. But Sakura never thought she would react quite like this. She honestly thought that she was past this.

She never expected to just start crying.

It wasn't outright sobs yet, thank god. Just tears flowing down her cheeks as her face got all scrunched up and weepy. She had no idea if they came from sadness, joy, anger, relief, confusion or a psychotic breakdown... she felt like they were all viable options. Maybe it was an amalgamation of all of them. She couldn't hear her own thoughts...

"Sakura?" His eyes were a little wide, one eyebrow raised, and the tone mildly inquiring. But she knew him. Sasuke was freaking out. For some reason, that made her giggle through the tears.

And **here** are the sobs. Great. Also, when did she move, exactly? Because, right now, Sakura was heaving sobs on Sasuke's shoulder, her arms wrapped around him like a vice and trapping his. But at least she was talking... yelling... mumbling... same thing.

"You selfish bastard! What the hell were you thinking? Just going away like that to run to a psycho? And when you **promised** me you wouldn't! You promised me... And nearly killing us! Of all the stupid, idiotic things... And what the fuck do you mean 'thank you'? Huh?! What kind of parting is that, even? The nerve... I should punch you right back to Konoha! You vanishing... self-absorbed bastard... Uchiha... asshole!"

A sigh. Then, "Been spending a lot of time with Naruto, huh?"

He didn't even have the decency to hide his mocking! Immediately, she let go and stepped away only to backhand him (gently) on the chest. "Jerk."

But she was smiling. And even though she only felt relieved at seeing it... she kinda missed that self-important smirk. She took the time to study him. The seals on the edges of his eyes, just as dark but less haunted than she remembered ever seeing them. The aristocratic face, framed by long bangs. His hair grew, but the tie clearly failed in taming it as it still stuck out wherever allowed to. He was always good looking, even as a boy, and always appeared unapproachable, but there was a slightly different air to him now. Something lighter. She had to agree with Naruto – he really did look well.

It was he who broke the silence first, much to her surprise; "It's been a while." _How have you been?_ Her mind translated automatically, and she was relieved he appears to be closer to his 13 rather than 16 year old personality.

She beamed through drying tears. "Yeah, it has." _I missed you, too._

Then, because her brain had apparently short-circuited at some point and disconnected from her mouth altogether, she stated: "I'm dating Lee."

He blinked at her non-sequitur. Then gave a single nod and said "Good."

It was her turn to blink because, sure he was never interested in her or seemed to want anything to do with her at all, they hadn't met in anything nearing amenable circumstances for a long time, and her statement itself was odd, but... still... "Good?"

"Yeah. I mean, sure he's kind of... much. But, from what I remember, he seemed like a decent guy. I don't think he'll do anything to hurt you. If he **does** , though, he will learn what is so special about tsukuyomi."

She blinked. "Did you just threaten my boyfriend over my virtue?"

"I figured I'm sort of obligate to."

Sakura wasn't sure what exactly her face was doing right now, but she was sure it involved a whole lot of twitching. _Why you... Obligated, really? What even gives you the right? You arrogant little... If there's anyone that's hurt me... What are you, my fath_ _er?! Even Naruto wasn't_ _ **this**_ _much of an idiot!_ _He was so right, that stick up your ass is clearly putting pressure on your brain!_ "You are like my little sister." _You arrogant... Wait, what?_ "Sasuke-kun. I'm older." she deadpanned. Yeah, her mouth was clearly disconnected from her brain.

"Like a few months mean anything." Then, he had the audacity to roll his eyes at her! If anyone's eyes deserve to be rolling here, they are clearly not his! "You are loud, nagging, overly emotional, perpetually concerned over the smallest issues, kind, caring, violent, kind of precious and all out annoying. Therefor – little sister."

It was a confusing list of compliments and insults, and while she understood what the underlying sentiment was **supposed** to be... well... it wasn't the one she heard loudest. She hadn't felt this vulnerable in a long time. Not since training with Tsunade. "I know you missed the memo, but I'm not a weak little girl anymore, Sasuke-kun. I don't need you protecting me."

"I know. This was never why we protected you, anyway. With the three of us, you were the only thing around worth protecting. Regardless of your ability to protect yourself."

"Oh."

"Anyway, I can finish showing you the place. If you have any questions or there's something else you need – just tell me. We will go about acquiring it as soon as possible. There will probably be a few electronic analysis devices you will have to do without – we will not need them regularly, so for now we decided to wait on those and turn to allies in the case of emergency. Secondly, I want to consult with you at some point about medical jutsu you think are basic enough to integrate into preliminary training, if any. I also have the files of your future trainees. You can review them at your leisure if you want, see if they can handle it."

Right. This is why she was here. Professional stuff. She could focus on that, until her emotions settle. Feeling her confidence and determination coming back, she gave him a resolute nod. "Can I see the files now?"

"Sure. But it could wait for tomorrow."

"I'd rather not waste time."

"Of course. I'll drop them off in your room."

"Thank you." He turned to leave when her voice stopped him: "Sasuke-kun?" and this was his friend talking again, not the medic. "Lee has far more of a right to kick **your** ass."

"Heh. That's probably true. Wouldn't recommend it, though." He left, and the smallest of smiles tugged at the corners of her lips. _You were right, Naruto. Definitely the same bastard._

* * *

This was her first official day in Oto, and although "classes" will not start until tomorrow it was a busy one. Throughout the morning she occupied herself with supervising the last shipment of medical supplies, arranged for further necessities to be added, improved on the layout and furnishings of some of the examination rooms and insured the classroom – as it was dubbed – was suitable for the lessons' requirements.

If she was honest, she was rather impressed with the last one. The room itself was spacious, the acoustics so fine she suspected another auditory jutsu. The students' stations were arranged in a half-circle, taking advantage of the small number of future-medics, to ensure equal ease of visibility. Each of the necessary books was not only present in multiple copies, but contained within seals etched into the wood of the tables for easy reach and storage.

Perhaps she should have been less surprised by that last one, however, as Oto seemed to be using seals **a lot**. From very basic ones like the containment seals, to the more complex such as the auditory genjutsu at the village entrance, and up to the unique personalized aids helping to control the adverse effects of Orochimaru's curse-seals she heard about... they were everywhere. The village almost felt like a shrine of practical knowledge, and she couldn't wait to set foot in the library since the moment she saw it and realized Naruto was **not** , in fact, exaggerating. She understood, now, why Konoha's own experts were sent to study here.

She had also made sure to make herself available for medical aid while the other three medics conducted personal interviews of the ten future iryo-nin. Unfortunately, she did not seem to have many patients. Or... any. Despite of having been warned of the probability of this, as well as intellectually understanding the suspicion of medics – and ones who are strangers, at that – from people whose previous closest examples of the profession were the likes of Orochimaru and Kabuto, she was still a little hurt. Sakura had dedicated her life to helping people even over being a shinobi, and the mistrust stung, especially as she knew she was probably needed by someone that just refused to reach out. Even knowing it was likely temporary, that the patients will come once they got to know her... it did not help much.

Lunch was spent in the large meadow rather than at the residence with her colleagues, catching up with Sasuke in a more relaxed setting now that the initial shock was waning. She also hoped that seeing her among them will help ease the villagers' minds as to her personality and intentions. Afterwards, she had gone over the notes from the morning's interviews, reread the information she had already gone over the previous day, and gave her final approval of her future students. A more business-oriented discussion with Sasuke, and they decided that the only iryo-nin techniques feasible for general training would be preliminary diagnostic ones, and even then as an advanced course. They also managed to finalize the list of students and the classes' timetable, as well as the teachers' and medics' rotations.

Now, in the early evening, she could finally sit in her office and wait for her first patient - her confidential patient Tsunade had talked about.

She didn't have long to wait when a knock sounded at her office' door. At her admittance, it opened, and a red-eyed redhead entered, shutting the door behind herself before sitting down in front of Sakura. She was wearing barely-descent shorts with overlong sandals and a green long-sleeved blouse.

That wasn't what gave Sakura pause, though.

"You are one of the trainees."

"Yes."

The answer was dry, almost toneless, and after years of Tsunade's eyebrow and Sasuke's glares she could practically hear the 'Your point?' hidden in it. She gave her brain a mental shake to refocus. "Sorry. I just didn't know that, is all." One deep inhale. Exhale. "Anyway, we should probably not waste either of our times. Tsunade-sama explained the situation to me, but I would still rather take a look before starting with anything else, maybe go deeper. If that is alright."

"Sure." Karin smiled at her. It wasn't much of a smile, really, but Sakura got the feeling it was mostly for her own benefit, and that was... well... "You may be surprised, but I actually trust you, if only due to reputation. Besides, I don't think I would have if you just started treatment immediately."

Sakura felt her own lips curving. Karin's tone was still dry, matter-of-fact and with more then a hint of sarcasm. _I could like her_ , she thought. "Well, to be honest, I doubt we will start today at all. Like I said, I want to do a more thorough preliminary, and then get some medical history from you. The last thing we want – in any kind of treatment – is to make a patient worse because we didn't feel like asking them some questions." Hey, it never hurt to start lessons early, right?

At Karin's nod, Sakura got up and had her lie back. She started with the same procedure Tsunade had previously performed and gulped. Her teacher hadn't been exaggerating any more than her friend had. In fact, she suspected Tsunade may have downplayed the severity of the situation. Sure, it was treatable... but that was about where the good news ended. She could see why this was given to her, specifically.

She inwardly lamented not having better machinery. An x-ray was useless for this type of imaging, and while Sasuke assured her they had close enough connections to civilian villages to be cleared for use of their hospitals' facilities, her patient's wish to keep things under wraps meant she couldn't post the request. She will have to do it old school, and carefully. The state of her patient's pathways was such that, even just in diagnostic levels, the foreign chakra could cause further harm to her system.

Luckily for Karin, she didn't have to know that, and Sakura was more than capable of insuring she never will.

She pushed deeper, proud of her natural control more than ever before, and tested the edges of the dead-ends, the flexibility of the narrow points, and the stability of the blood vessels and organs around the areas she will need to treat. She was both thorough and careful, taking care to be as exact and as unobtrusive as possible. But even so, she knew it wasn't painless.

While barely a shadow of what was to come, the pain of the procedure itself, this tentative poking was already taking its toll. She wasn't making a sound, not moving away or trying to top the examination, but Karin's pain was clear in the bulging of the vain in her neck, and the tightening of the muscle under her jaw, as she tried to keep from gritting her teeth. It was a sign to both of them of things to come, and even as Sakura mentally commanded her resilience and dedication, she also lamented the final confirmation that no, the stubborn woman will **not** be changing her mind. _Duh. Didn't Tsunade-sama tell you she is an_ _ **Uzumaki**_ _? Why the hell did you think she would?_

Finally, it was over, and both women could breath easier at the relief of tension, Sakura scribbling her findings in an empty chart. "Okay. This will take a while, and like you already know there are no guarantees, but I think we have a real chance of fixing this. Your chakra network will never be perfect, and the treatment could use up some of your own stores, but nothing you won't be able to manage. I agree with Tsunade-sama that moral support could actively help you, but that is still ultimately your decision. I think we can start as early as tomorrow afternoon if you are available, but for now I would like you to answer some standard questions for me. Be accurate, leave nothing out, and don't worry – nothing you say will leave this room."

"Of course, doctor."

"Sakura is fine!" she said, feeling strangely flustered, "Besides, we will practically be colleagues eventually, right?" Karin nodded once, and Sakura cleared her throat. "So, first of all..."

* * *

 **A.N.:** I really wanted to show the importance and amount of skill required by medical ninja. I always felt like it was mostly pushed aside and rarely shown, and I personally believe that as helpful as it is to punch the ground and cause an earthquake, Sakura's true skill and uniqueness lay in her healing rather than fighting, and she wasn't given enough REAL credit for it in what we were shone.  
I hope you liked the interactions. Please let me know if you think something feels out of character or contradictory, that initial Sakura-Sasuke meeting took some time and I still wasn't sure, so I appreciate any feedback.  
'Til next week. ^_^


	15. As Time Goes By

**Chapter 14: As Time Goes By**

"Now, concentrate on the fish." Sakura instructed, "Expand its lungs, force back air, increase the moisture and bring it back." 'The fish exercise', as it was dubbed by most medics, had seemed so odd to her when she had been the one training. However, hard as it was, it did have some logic to it – if you could manage to resuscitate a fish out of water, however briefly, there wasn't much you **couldn't**.

She looked at her students with pride. It has only been some weeks since her party's arrival in Oto, but most of the prerequisite reading had been done long before, the hours put in by the students were long, and sooner than she expected they moved on to practical instruction. She doubted it will take much longer than a year to bring Oto's medics into complete independence and a decent skill level. It was a relief to her heart. Oh, it wasn't bad here. She liked the people she met, the chance to reconnect to her once-teammate, but... She already missed her friends. Her family.

She missed Lee.

While accustomed to lengthy separations – it was simply how things were, for shinobi – this will be their longest one yet. Already, she would sit in her office or on a bench taking a long-deserved break, and feel that it was too quiet. Wake up in the morning and turn to the side, mouth already open, before realizing he wasn't there to wish a good-morning to. Hopefully, by the time the lessons were over, so would the bulk of Karin's treatment, and she could go home.

Or at least find an excuse for him to visit?

A flopping sound met her ears, and she focused back on her class. She was impressed. It was no easy fit to manage this exercise so quickly, but Karin's control seemed to be as good as her own, her sensing abilities giving her an extra edge on the others. An hour later, another trainee exclaimed in accomplishment as their fish started jumping around and another was getting close, and her lesson ended. In a few minutes, another instructor will take over for poison-extraction.

Things were progressing well on other fronts as well. After the first few days, the other medics seemed to take a page of her book and would occasionally eat in the glade among the villagers. That, combined with stories from the trainees who met them and her visibly re-growing friendship with their leader, had done much to minimize the population's weariness of them. No longer was the on-call medic's office left empty, or their shifts idle. Instead, she felt her heart would break at the number of requests for fertility checks. Felt it squeezing at little children showing her their skinned knees or elbows asking to _make it better, nee-chan, please_. She had treated coughs – from the mundane to the bloody, battle injuries – both minor and that would kill anyone without Orochimaru's seal or a bijuu, and everything in between.

And one stubborn Uzumaki, she was coming to view as a friend.

* * *

Sakura could distantly feel the sweat beading on her forehead as she pushed more chakra into the frayed network, directing and molding it to encourage the vessels to widen, connect and reform. On the bed, half-reclining, Karin was biting hard on the leather bit she was given to avoid harming her tongue and teeth. The treatment was going well, all things considered, and Sakura was actually impressed with the amount of progress they made in just two months. But the procedure was painful, and for all her assurances of trust Karin still refused all but the most mild sedatives, and those had close to no effect anyway.

She still wasn't complaining, but Sakura found herself wishing she would soon, at least enough to take a pain-killer that would actually help. As incredible as her progress was, they still have a long way to go.

"Are you sure you wont tell anyone?" Sakura tried to convince her again, at the end of the appointment, as Karin was regaining her breath, "Even if not your partner... at least Sasuke-kun? You are close, after all, and he can get me better equipment for this, or at least decrease your duties so you can rest more."

She took Karin's little smile to mean fond exasperation. "No, Sakura. It's for the best, really. I don't want to publicize it to anyone. Like you said, we're close – it will worry him. And my duties are too important to decrease anyway. Besides, they don't take so much of me. Most are more instinct than effort, by now. Thanks, though."

"If you say so... But it isn't healthy, pushing yourself so hard without any support... A break wouldn't kill you, you know."

Karin raised an eyebrow: "Oh?.. And I assume you never pushed yourself?" Sakura felt her cheeks turn a little pink. "Lets face it. We wouldn't be where we are if we hadn't pushed ourselves. Any shinobi. We're all stubborn by default."

Sakura smiled. "I guess you're right. But we wouldn't be here without people who care and help us, either."

* * *

"...Still, I never even considered shorthand sealing to be in the realm of possibility. The shapes and wording are so delicate..."

"It is not so new a concept, really. I believe something similar was used in Uzushio to minimize the amount of space and time required for sealing, though the technique was likely different. In any case..."

Sakura smiled as she glanced away from the other table. It was rarer for the sealers of the Konoha delegation to eat in the glade than it was for the medics, but it sounded like their fascination with their work had them joining their Oto colleagues. She was glad they seemed to get along. And even if she understood none of what they were saying, at least the exchange of information proved productive. They definitely sounded more upbeat than they did when first setting out, apprehensive and suspicious.

She hadn't seen them much other than in the evenings, when she was about ready to drop right into bed. Between the hospital, the studies and their own library shut-ins, there just wasn't much overlap between the two Konoha groups. She was relieved, then, to see they had managed to connect to others. It would have been extremely lonely for them here, otherwise.

As for herself, she spent much of her very limited free time exploring and catching up with her absentee friend. Interacting with Sasuke was... interesting... at first. She didn't really know what to think of him anymore, and his words at their first meeting only made everything more confusing. But soon, they found a rhythm again. It was different from the one they had before – she was no longer infatuated, he was no longer dismissive – but it was a good one.

He told her a bit of Oto, the early months, though he wouldn't explain the reason for his initial return or the time after the fight with Itachi, stating he doesn't really remember much, anyway. He spoke little of his time with Orochimaru; she didn't ask often, unsure if she wanted to know. From Suigetsu, she heard the humorous tales – such as the 'teahouse-incident' as he dubbed it, when they were looking for his darling Kubikiribocho. She looked at the Uchiha from the corner of her eye as he glared at the Hozuki ("Come on! These were the good times! I never had so much free yogurt! Say, do you think we can go back there sometime?"). She wished she could say it was unbelievable, but... it really wasn't.

God. Did she really used to be one of them? No wonder his rebuffs were so definite.

She, in turn, told him of the happenings in Konoha; personal things he had missed in his absence. She spoke of their year-mates, her studies under Tsunade, Asuma-sensei's death, Hinata's confession to Naruto (finally!), Kurenai-sensei's pregnancy... Mostly, she spoke of team 7. She could see in his eyes, in the way he listened to the most mundane bits of gossip he normally didn't care for, that he missed them as well. It went a long way to easing her heart.

* * *

"We've met before, you know. Well, kinda. I guess 'met' may be too strong a word. We ran into each other, more like." They just finished their latest session and Sakura was updating Karin's chart when the redhead spoke, causing her to stop and raise her head for a moment.

"We did?" Sakura was surprised. She couldn't recall any event when they did. Karin wasn't exactly of common looks, and she would have likely remembered it if they met, if only for her coloring.

She refused to think of her own unusual hair color. That was beside the point.

"Yeah. I forgot the name of the village, though. You were part of a large group looking for Sasuke with some dogs. Don't worry that you don't remember, we just passed by each other on the street. But I'm a sensor, and you have been using your chakra on me for a while now. I recognized it." Sakura remembered the time Bisuke and Shiba had smelled Sasuke, but she didn't see him. It was traces from Karin, then. But that would mean...

"You were with Sasuke? I mean, part of the team he formed three years ago to find Itachi?"

Karin got a strange gleam in her eyes, "Well, again, I'm a sensor, and we always worked well together." In a less mocking tone she added, "But yeah. Back then. You guys got much too close for comfort at the time, but I'm glad we got the chance to know each other. I mean, sure the situation is shit, but you're not too annoying, so..."

Sakura found herself laughing her ass off. She surprised herself, but she really couldn't help it. Karin was looking at her like she doubted her sanity, so clearly this was not intentional, but still... "Thank you, Karin. Sorry, but... I think not everyone is going to agree with you..." she was still giggling, but at least Karin's face regained their normal superior expression.

"Humph. Well, whatever. You're not too stuck up for a Konoha shinobi, is all I'm saying."

Sakura's laughter died down to be replaced by a genuine smile. "Karin?"

She looked back at her, "Hmm?"

Sakura's smile widened "Me too."

* * *

As she stepped out to the setting sun, giving her back a much-needed stretch after the strain her body had just gone through, a familiar voice surprised Karin: "Can I talk to you for a moment?"

She turned to face Suigetsu, leaning casually on a tree trunk nearby. The picture itself was not so unusual, but the serious glint in his eyes, the tone of his voice, even the words themselves... He hadn't been so unantagonizing towards Karin in a long time. Not for over a year.

Maybe that was why she just followed after him to a private corner of the village, without argument or question.

He sighed, "You really are an airhead, you know that?"

 **This** is what he had to say to her? Really?! She exploded: "Who the fuck do you think you're calling an airhead, you idiot? Why did I even think this was going to be an intelligent conversation? Huh, like you are even capable of those... too much water in your skull for a..."

"Will you shut up already, banshee? Why do I even bother giving a shit, you ungrateful bitch?"

"What did you say?" she hissed.

"You know what? If you feel like killing yourself, fine! Not like anyone actually cares about it!"

Karin blinked. "Huh? What? What are you talking about, kappa?"

Suigetsu scoffed. "Your stupidity, obviously. Did you really think no one was gonna notice? You normally can't keep your mouth shut, but this you don't tell anyone about?"

"How...", she blinked, "How did you know?" There was no point denying what he clearly already knew. But Suigetsu wasn't the most observant person, and she knew none of their 'watchers' will blab about personal stuff – even if they wanted to. If anyone were to find out, she would have imagined it to be Juugo, as regular birds are terrible gossips without much tact. But... Suigetsu?! Out of everyone?!

"Yeah, well... I was getting an antidote – in case of whatever, you know – when I heard your banshee-screech. Decided to investigate who finally did you in."

 _He heard me scream and got worried_ , she mentally translated. For all his passionate claims to the contrary, and all their arguments and fights, it had long become obvious how much Suigetsu cared about them. It wasn't just that he respected Sasuke, though it was probably a big reason he stayed initially, but he genuinely liked Juugo, and even cared about her by now.

She cared about him, however annoying.

"Yeah, well... sorry for the disappointment, but it really isn't anyone else's business."

"You sure about that? 'Cause whatever you say, I can think of at least one person that proves you wrong, there."

She closed her eyes, before opening them again and dropping the last of her pretense: "Sasuke will just worry about me, okay. I didn't want to worry anyone and especially not him." Then, after a brief pause, "And don't you dare blab, you hear me? Or I'll stick you in a bucket and feed you to a thirsty cow!"

"Where do you even come up with this stuff?! Besides," he continued in a quieter voice, "how's that working out for you exactly? 'Cause I think he's pretty worried." Hell, even Suigetsu himself was starting to notice how ragged she looked, even if he thought it was just all the studying. "You're supposed to notice stuff. Don't tell me didn't see your hubby side-eying you every chance he gets. Or your plate magically refilling all the goddamn time." She hadn't. Was she really so tired?.. She did know Sasuke was worried, though, to the point where he outright asked her if something is wrong. Not so much as to press, though, understanding her _fine_ meant _I don't want to talk about it_ , and trusting her to come to him if she did.

But she was done with this conversation. "We're not married!", she deflected.

"Sure, 'cause no one else is around here, but that means shit and you know it!" Another sigh, "Look. I won't say anything. Just saying you kinda need to. But I know, anyway, so...", he was suddenly **very** interested in the clouds, "just... you know... if you need to... whatever..."

She smiled, deciding to put him out of his misery, "Thanks, Suigetsu."

He was getting really red, starting to steam a little. "Whatever! You're still dumb! I just don't feel like cleaning up your shit!" and he stalked off.

At least she had someone to talk to about it, now, other than just Sakura.

Even if it was **Suigetsu**.


	16. Interlude: Winter Nights

**A.N.:** The most lemony thing in this fic and it turned out... not so lemony. More of a mandarin? An orange? Oh, well. You'll see what I mean. This has nothing much to do with the plot, hence - interlude. Hope you enjoy!

* * *

 **Interlude: Winter Nights**

Warmth was overrated. It was temporary, elusive, a limited comfort that didn't seem to last without direct exposure to the source. It needed constant care to last, and when it didn't – it turned suffocating.

And yet, most seemed to ignore the merits of a chill, the calm it brought with it, the soothing effect of ice on a wound numbing the pain away even long after it has been removed. While warmth often clang to a single spot, the cold spread to engulf you everywhere, bringing with it a clarity of mind where warmth gave drowsiness, a solid grasp on reality. The cold could easily seep into your core where as warmth was only surface-deep, steady where the other was fleeting. It could be cruel, sometimes, but the comfort it brought was true as opposed to the illusory comfort of warmth.

Karin will always choose the fresh reality of winter over the dream promises of spring.

The cold of winter was filling all of her senses now; the taste on her tongue like that of an ice cube to the parched, the scent of ever-greens all she could smell, her eyes viewing the world through the filter of a hazy fog, her ears soothed by the sound of a cool wind high on a mountain peek and a powerful gale cocooning her all around and chilling the very blood in her veins… really, could you blame her for falling for his chakra when **this** is what it felt like?

She deepened their kiss even more, and the arms holding her tightened further, on the brink of hurting, nearly squeezing her to death. There could be no question about it – he will never let her go. The hold was at once defiant and insecure, protective and desperate, both vowing and pleading. It would feel confusing from anyone else, but with him it made perfect sense.

She undid the tie in his hair and ran her hand through the locks, tangling her fingers in their roots. She loved that he stopped trimming it; the wild look it gave him a perfect fit for the untamed force he embodied, the restless spirit he possessed. Sasuke seemed to always be moving towards **something** , aiming for something, fighting, learning, doing… if he didn't have a whole village to look after, she would have feared peace rather than hoped for it, for thought of what a stagnant life might do to him. He was a man of goals, and needed to have something driving him to function.

She only ever needed to feel like she had a place in the world. She only needed him.

Their hands moving and mouths locked, no sound passed between them but that of their breath and the movement of air deep in their throats. Soon, there were no more barriers between them and all that was redundant was discarded and pushed aside, pretense as well as clothing. Their lips parted – if reluctantly – and turned to other venues.

She kissed his forehead, cheeks, shoulders, arms, even somehow managed a gentle bite to a stray bicep in the weird tangle their bodies made. She avoided any oral touch to his neck.

It had never been a request, no awkward moment in the past; they had never even had to discuss it at all. She just knew enough about him and his past, knew all that he had been through and what certain things meant to him that were likely inconsequential to others. The fact he never called her out on it, that it went unmentioned still, was confirmation enough. Much like his own avoidance of biting or marking her.

He moved down her body, kissing, caressing and mapping every inch of her, smooth-skinned or blemished, inflaming her one second only to cool her the next. The only break in this, the only spots that were treated differently, were those few marks on her wrist he had caused himself, the bites from a time when he didn't know how much it cost her. Those he wouldn't quite kiss, rather just resting his lips, his forehead, even the tip of his nose, almost like he was seeking her forgiveness - apologizing without voicing it. How absurd. After all, for each one of them, she was the instigator. So few they were compared to all the rest adorning her body, so insignificant, and the only ones she was actually willing – even glad – to bare. For whatever reason - be it her willingness, his care for her, the rarity of it, the calming cold of his chakra or Karin herself just being too infatuated to notice – his bites never hurt her. They were the only ones that didn't. Instead she felt… well, it wasn't pain…

But she knew it was for the best on the off chance something could be triggered, and understood why he did it, what he was silently telling her. For all of her shameless flirting in the past, before realizing just how unnecessary it truly was, it was her brain he complemented her the most on. He counted on her skills, her cunning, her plans and support, but never cared much for her looks, or what perfume she felt like using that day. No matter how he had put it back when he asked her to come with him in search of psychopaths, he hated the thought of using her. Even more so now they are together. And this is what those bites meant to him – using her, hurting her… So she let it go without comment, knowing from experience how useless it would be to try and rid him of the guilt.

He didn't leave her much time or sense for it anyway, never pausing so she only noted those moments after the fact once her heart wasn't trying to escape from her rib-cage to his. The only pause, the only time tears formed in her eyes when they were like this, was when he reached her stomach. He would linger there, the kisses so gentle it only made everything worse, comforting her, reassuring her and mourning all at the same time. This little ritual had only been there for the past year, after all.

When she lost their baby she thought she would break. She couldn't eat, couldn't sleep, most days she felt like she couldn't breathe. Living was a chore. It was being here when her child wasn't, when they never got the chance to, and she could only blame herself. No, at the time, she **knew** that she had killed them.

Worse still – she thought she would break **him**. He had watched his brother kill their parents (no matter the reason) when he was only eight, and now, at eighteen, had to helplessly witness his child be murdered by their mother. She couldn't touch him. Rather, she could not allow him to touch her in anything but anger, and it confused her why he never did. Why he wasn't angry at her at all. Why he seemed to be honest when telling her that it was not her fault. Why, through his own obvious pain, he was trying to alleviate hers.

Later, when she finally believed his words herself, when everything was back to some semblance of normality, he told her that it gave him something to focus on. That with their village mostly running itself, and Juugo and Suigetsu doing their best to help where they could, he needed something to make him stop thinking. That in helping her he managed to give himself enough time to deal with the loss without needing to level a mountain. He also said that he knew he couldn't afford to lose her, too. That the way she acted and what she clearly thought scared him too much to **not** do something.

But even if they were better, even if the wound scabbed over, it was still not gone. When their baby died, it was the second and last time she ever saw him crying. Apparently, he had a thing about allowing himself tears only once. But in those moments, when they were like this and he was so close to where their child used to be, in a position that was surprisingly common when they were still there, he couldn't help the resurfacing sorrow. Neither of them could. So he would linger there, and she will hold tightly to his head, and they will send a quiet promise to their child that despite moving on with their lives, they did not forget them. That they never would, and still wished that they could be there, to have been given the chance to know them.

But their lives did continue, and with a last kiss – so did the night, and soon enough Karin knew nothing but him again. The heat of the body holding her tight and the cold of the chakra wrapping her in a cocoon making her feel safer than she ever thought she could, protected and cherished and loved. And when she felt that chakra mixing with hers, when the power and safety ingrained in it filled every void that still lingered in her – she couldn't help but let everything else go.


	17. Worry

**A.N.:** This chapter contains a flashback to the previous year. It is the main reason for the rating, and probably the worst in the fic. Possible triggers ahead. You have been warned.

WARNINGS: Depictions of miscarriage, depression, self loathing, extreme guilt, self harm elements and severe grief.

* * *

 **Chapter 15: Worry**

He couldn't take it anymore. He just couldn't. Karin kept looking far more rugged than she should, distracted, weary... and she still won't talk to him. Last week, he tried to ask again. She said that she was only tired.

Clearly, this was more than just 'tired'.

He wishes he could say he didn't remember her ever looking like this, but that would be a lie. He could recall one time. With stark clarity. And it made his worry all the worse. True, it was not completely the same; she wasn't unresponsive, she didn't appear depressed, didn't shy away from food nor pushed anyone away other than that... but it was close enough that he broke his own moral code yesterday, and asked Tsuki what was it that his lover refused to tell him.

The snow-white ninja cat – bless and curse her integrity – just blinked at him with the same affectionate look most of the cats who knew him as a child did. "Kitten, you know I can't tell you that, by your own orders. I will say this, though: she is not in danger. I'm sure she will tell you in time, she's just stubborn like that. Good for her, no cat worth their fur isn't, but she will get over it soon. Please try not to worry so much. She is perfectly safe, and healthy, I promise. There is nothing wrong." He knew she wouldn't lie to him, but that only left him with more questions.

Sasuke had long ago come to hate not knowing.

He had noticed something else as well, though: over the past few weeks, there seemed to be a different air around Karin and Suigetsu than before. Oh, they still argued worse than Naruto and himself in their genin days, but there were certain looks... timely subject changes... a sort of silent understanding between them no one else was included in. Oh, he knew there was no foul play going on. No, to him it was obvious – whatever was going on with Karin, Suigetsu knew about.

He had put it off – it was odd for Karin to confide in Suigetsu, and all the more so over something she refused to tell him – but enough was enough. He was going to make the swordsman spill no matter what it took, and apologize later for any actual harm should it come to it.

Karin... her safety... was much more important to him than any moral code.

* * *

He finally managed to track him down – unsurprisingly – at the lake, swimming and spitting out water like a living fountain. For all his urgency, though, he didn't bother making his presence known. There was no need to, as proven when, a minute or two later, Suigetsu stopped, freezing for a moment, before veeery slowly turning around to face him. When he met his eyes, he sagged almost instantly. "Oh, shit."

"Suigetsu, get out of there. We need to have a word."

"Ahhh... Can I just stay here, maybe?.. It's suddenly gotten so cold..."

"Suigetsu."

"Eek!" he practically jumped out of the water, visibly shaken. In all honesty, Sasuke felt terrible. He wasn't sure why – perhaps it had something to do with his killing intent back when they tracked down Juugo and they were both being idiots – but he knew that Suigetsu was still a little afraid of him. Normally, he hated it; the man was his friend, a dear one at that, and Sasuke would never hurt him, really. But this time, that fear was working in his favor.

He will make the best of it, use it to his advantage and get the information he needed. But he vowed to himself to make it up to him later. After all, Suigetsu was surprisingly easy to please. He tilted his head to the side, made sure to grace Suigetsu with the full weight of his gaze, and said as calmly as possible: "What's going on with Karin? I know you know something, so spill."

And he did. Easily. After all, it wasn't like he didn't want to. He just needed the excuse. _Thanks for that, Sasuke_.

* * *

 _A high-pitched shriek echoed through the night, jarring him from sleep. Sasuke didn't have to look far for the source; right next to him, Karin was looking – and sounding – more panicked than he could ever remember or even thought was possible for her. She was looking everywhere, but her eyes were vacant and wild, probably not seeing a thing. She wasn't screaming anymore, resorting to mumbling instead, and it took a little while before he realized she was constantly repeating the same word over and over again: "No. No... no. Noooo no no nononono no. No..."_

 _It was already starting to scare him too. "Karin? What is it? What's wrong?" He wasn't sure she even heard him. Her movements only got more frantic, her mumbling more panicked; "No... What... I... I can't... can't... I can't feel... Where i... There's... Anything... Why..."_

 _"Karin!"_

 _The sharp tone of his voice made her look at him at last, but her eyes were still wild, still not really registering what they are seeing. But at least she was actually talking to **him** now. "Sasuke, there's... nothing!.. I... I can't feel anything! Why can't I feel..."_

 _"Feel what?" a sense of dread started to build in him, and he would have hoped she was having trouble waking from a nightmare... but this was the opposite of Karin having a nightmare. Normally, she will be eerily quiet, her body laying still, either crying or breathing deep. Now, though... Now she was sitting up, shaking, frantic, desperate... and he knew her well enough to know this couldn't **not** be serious. She still wasn't giving him a clear answer either. He could only guess that she was trying to sense for something that she couldn't find, but that was it. _

_Before long, though... a familiar scent started to register in his own mind. It took him a while to realize it was blood, not having been around it enough to truly smell it for some time. It appeared to be coming from..._

 _Oh, please no._

 _Flinging the blanket off of her, his sharingan – activated through sheer adrenaline – immediately zeroed in on the small, steadily growing, red patch on the sheet._

 _Karin's eyes saw it at almost the same instant. The pained scream she let out now, was even worse than before._

* * *

 _They lost their baby. It sounded so underwhelming, like they could just be found again rather than being completely gone... dead._

 _His child was dead._

 _His son. Or his daughter. A tiny Uchiha-Uzumaki person he never got to meet that had somehow become his life for the past few weeks, was dead._

 _No, still not setting in._

 _After losing his parents along with his whole clan and innocence, after losing his brother soon followed by his entire view of the world, after all the shit in his life... he truly hadn't thought it possible to feel any worse. This... This was worse. It somehow managed to hurt more than all the rest combined._

 _And that wasn't even the worst part._

 _Sasuke could never remember being this scared, not even on **that** night. Back then, he was more shocked and confused than anything. Angry. Desperate. Fear seemed to have a hard time pushing through everything else. He was a child at the time, not fully grasping what it all meant just yet, and once he did depression and anger were too dominant, his pride too ingrained in him, to allow the full impact of the fear. _

_He felt it now, though. Older and more than aware of what he stood to lose, he definitely felt it. Because beyond the pain for the child they will never raise, there was Karin. And Karin **terrified** him._

 _She just sat there, since they first got the news (not that they really needed to be told by that point), staring at nothing. Her tears stopped a while ago, and he suspected it was more from dehydration than relief. Numb just seemed too weak of a word to describe her. He would have even preferred her earlier panic to... this. And he didn't know what to do. Didn't know how to help her when he was so far from helping himself._

 _The only woman he ever loved, one of the strongest people he ever met, and she was all but catatonic after literally **feeling** their child die. She had to go though feeling the tiny chakra slowly fading away, even before the pain came on, and now she didn't eat. Didn't drink. Didn't sleep. Didn't say a word even to make Suigetsu go away._

 _And he had no idea how to stop it._

* * *

 _Sasuke could not lose her, too. Not after everything. So he pushed his own pain aside for the moment, and tried. He would beg until she finally took a few bites of dishes she had once pounced on, put a glass to her lips and tilted it so she would drink without even noticing. Stay up at night so it would guilt her to sleep._

 _But she still wasn't talking._

 _The previous day was something of an accomplishment, though. The first time she finished a whole plate. True, they were still on a one-meal-a-day basis, but... small steps, right? Even better – she finished today's, also. Sasuke just came back to the living room from washing said plate – no way he was leaving her alone for longer than absolutely necessary – when a weak, hoarse sound made his day; "Why?"_

 _It was a voice he hadn't heard for so long, it stopped him in his tracks. He took a deep breath, choosing not to react to the enormity of hearing her speak again – however faintly, "Why what?"_

 _"Why are you being so kind to me? Why do you care so much?"_

 _"Do I... have a reason not to?" He was confused. She knew he loved her. Knew he cared about her. They were just about to start a family together before... no... not allowed to think about it yet._

 _She would not look at him, but she did answer, "Shouldn't what I did be enough?" She must have read his confusion in his silence, because she spoke again, sounding so broken and hopeless he wanted to strangle himself for never having realized... "I killed your child."_

 _"What? You... Karin, no!" he ran to kneel before her, but she still refused to look at him. "Karin, listen to me. Please. This is **not** your fault. It..." But he couldn't say that it was **no one's** fault, and will not bring even more painful memories into this conversation, so he backtracked, "This is not your fault. Karin, I'm sorry if I ever gave you that idea. I love you," though he didn't say the words often, "and I **cannot** lose you, too. I need you, and you did nothing wrong. This... We can get through this... somehow... but I know that **I** can't. Not on my own."_

 _She did not seem to believe him, but she nodded._

 _Small steps, he reminded himself._

* * *

 _Things were getting better. Karin still seemed to have a hard time believing she was not at fault, but he could tell that she was trying. She was eating without having to be pressed. She was drinking, sleeping, talking. Everything still felt much too quiet, but he felt that he could leave the house now without her evaporating away from him._

 _He was grateful for the privacy afforded to them through the worst of it. Suigetsu – in a surprising show of tact – and Juugo having taken care of the safety and day-to-day managing of the village in their steads while leaving them mostly alone. Now, they came by a little more – Juugo more so than Suigetsu, and Sasuke was starting to ease back into smaller things that did not require human contact while Karin supervised the borders again._

 _Though no longer a complete shut-in, his ventures were still brief and at hours when the streets were almost empty. If asked where he was going, he would confess to having no particular destination in mind – but, somehow, he always ended up in the same place. The Children's House._

 _Suigetsu called him masochistic when he saw him there, but Sasuke disagreed. If anything, to him, it felt... almost therapeutic. He used to come here a lot before... everything, and the kids clearly missed him, if their welcome his first time back was anything to go on. He didn't stay there long – it **did** hurt – but he would come in the evening and let the little energy-bundles turn his hair into a garden, or read them a bed-time story if he stopped by at a later hour._

 _He couldn't summon the courage to visit the infants, just as he could not yet force himself to visit his baby's grave._

* * *

 _Karin had almost forgotten what his touch felt like. It had been far too long, a combination of her guilt and his hesitancy having kept them physically apart until recently._

 _Tonight, they were being intimate for the first time in – it seemed – forever, and it was really difficult to feel anything but him. Until he stopped. Why... Was that... did something just drip on her?_

 _Looking down, she saw his head laying on her stomach. A few more drops flowed into her bellybutton, and she realized he was silently crying. Finally, with her being almost back to normal, Sasuke was allowing for himself to break, too. To grieve. She knew there will be no outward display beyond this. That no comment will be made tomorrow morning. So she held his head to her (all she could reach like this), occasionally caressing his hair in soothing motions, and let a few tears of her own to escape as well._

 _They will just have to pass this mark another time._

* * *

The memories from one of the worst times of his life came back to the forefront as he leaned against the wall, trying to decide what to do with the information he gained. He was still unsure, when she turned the corner from the office and saw him. With a single look, she knew he knew.

"Sasuke..."

"Why didn't you tell me?" his voice was quiet, going for casual, but the hurt in his tone was too obvious despite his best efforts.

Karin heaved a sigh, lowering her gaze, "I didn't want you to worry. Or try and stop me from doing this. I'm sorry."

He nodded. He could understand that, knew he definitely would have as sure as he knew it was too late to do so now. Even so... "Just tell me one thing?" at her nod, he continued, "Why? You must have known there will be pain. And you know... You don't **have** to do this. I'll stand by anything you decide, but... you don't have to."

Her smile was that gentle one she only reserved for him since they first met. "I know. This isn't guilt, I promise. At least... not mostly." There will always be some guilt, it was unavoidable. "I just want... I want this, Sasuke. And I know that you do, too."

"Not in your expense."

"It won't be. But after last time..." she almost chocked, and had to swallow before she could continue, "We were terrified. When we found out. Why won't we be? I mean... us? As parents? But we both found out fast, didn't we? That we want this? Sasuke... I still want this..." Her eyes pleaded with him. So he gave a single nod, a barely audible "Okay.", and moved into step with her when she continued her exit. If she truly wants this, and not out of blame, he won't stand in her way. But he won't allow her to continue alone, either.


	18. Returning

**Chaper 16: Returning**

The missive from Konoha arrived about four months after the hokage's party had departed Oto, essentially stating that, during that time, nothing happened. Oh, the joys of politics. Once again, he found himself thanking the fates for the bare-minimum-bureaucracy style of his own village; less papers – more action.

In the missive, the hokage stated that after conferring with the council for several discussions ( _i.e. headaches_ , he mentally translated Tsunade's dimplomatese), the debate proved lacking ( _useless_ ) without further details ( _opportunities for the elders to ogle at and attempt to cow a "fledgling" leader_ ). As such, his presence – or that of his emissary - had been requested in Konoha to further expand upon and discuss Oto's request for a five-kage meeting under Konoha's sponsorship. It also mentioned any past requests made by Taka will be honored ( _so at least no Danzo_ ), as well as a suggestion to arrange the journey in concurrence with the seal masters' return in two weeks time, but the point remained.

He has to go to Konoha.

Shit.

"Are you sure you don't want to send someone else?" Karin asked, knowing his conflicted feelings about the village.

Touched as he was at her attempt to spare him (as well as, possibly, said village), he shook his head. "The hokage came here personally. As it stands, it would appear an insult to not reply in kind, no matter the permission given. And you know that I would rather deal with this personally. It is no different than what we expected, anyway."

All true. All things he kept repeating to himself as the day of departure drew closer and closer...

As he and Juugo – never far even now – were getting ready to leave...

As he left the gates of his home on a path he hadn't traveled in years...

As the journey went on...

As the gates of Konoha came within sight.

It still wasn't helping.

* * *

 _Konoha_. It has been a long time since he was last here and yet… not nearly long enough. In all honesty, Sasuke would have much preferred to come back never, just as he told Naruto after the latter found him out, but this conference was far too important to allow his own personal feelings to interfere. Still, walking down familiar streets – rebuilt and altered as they were – with Juugo by his side and an ANBU as guide, he already found it difficult to breathe. The very air of this place was oppressive to him, the people stealing glances at them in a mix of curiosity and barley veiled suspicion the same hypocritical, self-centered assholes that always populated this place. If ever he had any doubt as to his abandoning this place (he **hadn't** ), this little trip would have eradicated them completely. Barley ten minutes from the gate, and already it was getting unbearable. He just wanted to get to the hokage's office and get this week over with already so he could go home. If it wasn't for the shear magnitude of what they all faced…

But of course, why would getting to their destination be any better? Somehow, entering Tsunade's office (the ANBU formally presenting him before vanishing to somewhere in the ceiling making Sasuke grateful for the hood hiding his eye-roll) had only made his mood worse. Looking at Tsunade, he saw that he wasn't alone in his dislike of the other occupant of the room. Good. At least he hadn't been completely wrong about her, or he just may have turned right back on his heals and quit this shit.

"A pleasure meeting you, Taka-sama. Sadly, it appears I will not be able to attend the meeting, so I thought to greet you now, instead. It is common courtesy, after all."

Sasuke opted to ignore the man side-eying Tsunade, and tilted his head at her, instead. She sighed and explained: "I know I had given my word that you will not have to cross paths with him, but he rather **insisted**." If she put any more bite into that word, surely she would have needed a dentist.

The old, bandaged man at her side looked a bit miffed. Too bad. He was hoping he would get angry enough for a heart attack. "Let me introduce myself, Taka-sama. I am…"

"I know just who and what you are, Danzo." Sasuke interrupted him, having had more than enough already. Dammit, how was he to make it through this week? Forget diplomacy and public shows of respect, he should have just sent Karin! He could have handled the borders for a few days..! maybe… He took a deep breath, trying to compose himself enough to avoid an international incident, "I know of your past connections and actions, as do many in my village. An introduction is quite unnecessary… hmm?" Sasuke could feel Juugo starting to tremble, his skin gaining a slight gray tint. No doubt Sasuke's tension, coupled with Juugo's own anger at what he knew of the man, were the reason for his control fraying as it hadn't for a long time. Unable to use his sharingan for this with the hood obscuring it, Sasuke laid a hand on a broad shoulder and gently reminded his friend: "Juugo.". He was so proud that he didn't even need to tell him to calm down. Juugo just turned to look at him, took in a visible and very deep breath, and regained control of himself, aided by the now-glowing seal on the back of his neck.

It was, however, the perfect excuse. "As I was saying, Oto is quite aware of you – and as you can see you do not hold the best reputation in our midst. As anger can cause… episodes… still, as suppressed as the seals are now... It was for this very reason that I had requested you not attend – for your own safety as well as the sake of this alliance. Nothing personal, you understand." Everyone in the room knew it was **all** personal – if not the extent of it – but there was no way to dispute the statement after what had nearly happened.

Tsunade decided to interfere before the old warmonger could open his mouth again. "Danzo, please leave. You sated your curiosity and I am sure you have much work to do." She saw to it, after all, as a subtle attempt to keep him away from Sasuke. Obviously, it didn't work.

"That I do, Tsunade. After all, the safety of this village is of the highest importance to **me**." He turned to Sasuke "If you'll excuse me." Never was such a polite sentence said with such disdain. Sasuke almost smirked.

After the door was shut, Tsunade heaved a world-weary sigh, pulled out a surprisingly large sake bottle, and gestured for them to sit. "Sorry about him. He's bitter and conniving." She threw a smirk at Sasuke, "Still, this went rather well for 'not being responsible for your actions', and I doubt he'll try and bother you again."

"Hn.", came the Uchiha's non-committed answer.

* * *

He was grateful for the one-on-one with Tsunade. The fifth hokage was just about the only Konoha official he did not feel like strangling; liked, even. She had used the more relaxed setting to get an update on the medical team she had sent and the progress of schooling, inform him of the current applications of the supplies he provided, as well as the time-table for his visit. Sasuke, for his part, took the improvement in company to unwind a little. He allowed for the worst of his anger and stress to bleed out – knowing most of it was bound to return soon enough – and to try and forget where he was, and who he was about to meet. He needed that, now standing in front of Konoha's elders with only Juugo as silent support. At least he did not face them alone: other than the hokage, the major clans' heads were present as well. Hopefully, he will be able to focus on them.

"First of all, let us officially welcome you to Konoha. I trust the journey went well?" Koharu's statement was no less than the diplomatic necessity, but still managed to exude such disinterest as to sound almost bored.

"Indeed."

"Taka, Juugo," Tsunade started as it became clear the Uchiha won't be elaborating, "let me preset to you Konoha's elders - Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura, as well as Hyuuga Hiashi, Nara Shikaku, Yamanaka Inoichi and Aburame Shibi – heads of their respective clans."

Sasuke inclined his head, "A pleasure.", and if he only directed the statement to some of them, none needed to know. "If you will, hokage-sama, I would appreciate jumping right into the matter at hand. It is much too pressing to delay over pleasantries."

"Of course." Once again, he found himself thankful for Tsunade. Perhaps he will send her a gift if they all survive this trip.

"You say you wish for a war council with all five nations' kage." Shikaku also seemed to take his request to cut to the chase to heart.

"Yes."

"And why should a wayward group of criminals warrant such an extreme force to deal with it? If I recall correctly, they number less than five." _Do not openly glare at Homura. Do not..._

"The Akatsuki itself, yes. However, their **true** leader – not Pain who served as his puppet – had already formed military alliances with a vast majority of the smaller shinobi villages. Their force, as such, numbers in the hundreds. And I should probably not need to tell you this, but when the Akatsuki will make their move they'll move on Konoha. It will be soon. They had already sealed eight of the nine bijuu, all they are missing is the kyuubi."

"You sound so sure." Hiashi spoke next, "How did you come by this information? Kumo had sent no word of the loss of the hachibi."

Sasuke allowed for a smile. "I keep my ears open, and much reaches them." dropping it, he added, "My spies have been focusing their attentions on Akatsuki for a long time. One of them had witnessed the sealing of hachibi around the same time as your hokage's visit to our village."

"And? Say you speak truth. What is it to Oto? You have no bijuu, nor stake in the stopping of Akatsuki. Why do **you** put so much importance in this? Why do you think the other villages will work with Konoha? After all, some are far from allies." He could see Inoichi's point; without having all the details it would be most likely to believe they want the bijuu for themselves, and the other villages have nothing but pride to fight for.

"Because of what comes next. That kind of power is not gathered for its own sake, and the kind of knowledge that allows for the creation of the juubi is unlikely to be all that is known of it. At the very least, I believe the raikage would be eager to attack the Akatsuki. As for the rest, I believe they will see thing as we do, once they realize what we have: Akatsuki's goal for the juubi's power, is the enslavement of all of us."

* * *

In an overtly luxurious room in Konoha's best hotel normally reserved for foreign dignitaries and members of import, Sasuke dropped on one of the two canopied beds, his hood falling back from the momentum and a long growl not far behind the action. Juugo stood at the foot of the bed for a while, silently studying him, before eventually sitting down. "Are you alright?"

With a final huff, Sasuke removed his arms from over his head and opened his eyes. "About as much as I can be." There was no point lying to Juugo, but also no point to complaining, "I knew what I was setting myself up for. At least, I thought I did."

Juugo accepted his answer with a nod, opting to change the subject. "At least it went well, right?"

"About as well as possible, I guess. This is only the first meeting, and Konoha is in the highest risk from their prospective. They should not turn me down."

"Why have you still not told them? About the tsuki-no-me?"

While stating that Akatsuki's ultimate goal was to control the shinobi world as a whole, Sasuke hadn't been clear on the method. Instead, he had allowed for the implication that they will take over via the juubi's immense power. It wasn't a lie – it was indeed the power of the juubi combined with the rinnegan that will allow for the tsuki-no-me plan to come to fruition, and the result will be enslavement of the highest order: that of the mind. There will be no resisting it either, once activated, and so the only way to combat this will be to stop it from ever happening – stop the forming of the juubi. He shook his head, " **That** , is something I would prefer to keep to the summit. It is a revelation I would prefer to make only once. Besides, revealing everything now is risking Konoha shutting us out of the planning."

"Do you truly believe it will come to that?"

He shrugged, "Tsunade's voice is not the only one of import here, or you and I wouldn't have come here at all. The bigger nations have a history of shunning the smaller ones, that is why they are siding with Akatsuki."

Juugo nodded and turned to look through the window. "We have time yet," Sasuke addressed him after a while, "and not all of it stuck in a stuffy conference room. You don't have to stay by me the whole time. Explore a bit. Catch up with Shino. I know you would like to."

"Maybe later. For now, I want to make sure I don't lose control again."

"You didn't lose control."

"I **nearly** did."

Sasuke huffed, "Yeah, well, around that man? So did I. You will do fine." his smirk looked conspiratorial, "I know a lake."


	19. Konoha

**Chapter 17: Konoha**

"So this is Taka, then..."

"Why is he hiding his face?"

"Hmpf. Probably wanted somewhere. Or Orochimaru in disguise..."

"Remind me why we're catering to Oto, anyway? They killed the third..."

"That guy is huge..."

"The fifth is out of her mind to make an alliance with that village. And now she's **inviting** them here?!.."

"Lock your windows. There's no telling what they..."

"What is hokage-sama thinking?"

"Ne, ne, since you don't have anything scheduled until after lunch you gotta come to Ichiraku! They have a new dish with extra naruto. It's called 'The Uzumaki Special'!" Whether ignoring it by childhood habit or attempting to distract Sasuke, Naruto – officially serving as his and Juugo's "guide" in Konoha – did not appear to notice the whispers and gossip following them around. Just as well. At the moment, Sasuke had no objections to being distracted.

"Hmm. Of course they do." There was no harm in acting like himself. Everyone was much too concerned with their own conspiracy theories to take note, and if anyone **did** wonder just why Oto's leader was so familiar with Naruto... Well, they **had** met before, and the jinchuriki did have an uncanny habit of becoming anyone's best friend in five minutes flat. Alibi set.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Naruto only just held back the 'teme', but Sasuke still heard it.

"Relax. All I meant is they could have gone for something more original for 'the village hero'. Like a one-of-everything order, or something."

Naruto's eyes lit up and he was positively beaming at Sasuke, "Ooh, that would be awesome, dattebayo! But..." he mumbled, "it would probably get fewer orders..."

Sasuke gave a light chuckle and shook his head. "What?", Naruto asked.

"Nothing, it's just... You were named after food – and now that same food is being named after you."

"I wasn't named for food! I'll have you know, I was named after an amazing hero shinobi from ero-senin's only non-perverted book! He saved the world, dattebayo!"

"Hn. And what was **he** named after?"

"Ah... well... I don't know. Never asked."

It was nice, Naruto mused, having such lighthearted moments with his best friend again. It felt like no time at all had passed since they were thirteen in team 7, fighting together and each-other, getting into dumb stuff and making their collective way to Ichiraku after Naruto insisted on ramen – again. He wasn't so oblivious now as he had been, so he noticed how stressed Sasuke had been since first entering the village the day before. He was glad that he was laughing with him now – even if it was at his own expense.

When they reached Ichiraku, they found someone already there, though she had apparently just finished. "Hi, Ino-chan! How are you doing?"

"I'm fine, Naruto. It is a pleasure to meet you, Taka-sama. And, um..."

"Juugo." he introduced himself.

"Juugo-san as well! My name is Yamanaka Ino, one of Konoha's jonin. I hope you like it here so far."

Sasuke inclined his head, "Pleasure meeting you as well, Yamanaka-san. And please, there is no need for 'sama'. Just 'Taka' will do."

"I'll keep it in mind, Taka-san. If you'll excuse me, I have to go. Later, Naruto!"

"Bye, Ino-chan!"

After Ino was far enough away and their orders had been placed, Naruto turned to Sasuke in a low tone: "Gee, teme, I think you were actually nicer to her now you are pretending not to know her than when we were in the same class."

"Hn. To be fair, this time she wasn't literally jumping on me and yelling my ears off." he shrugged, "Makes being nice easier." _Fair point_ , Naruto mentally acknowledged.

They spent the lunch hour in amiable conversation and light ribbing, Juugo a mostly silent presence by their side. When the afternoon came, however, it was time for Sasuke to return to stuffy rooms and circling discussions and the reminders of all he hated in this village. Hopefully it will be easier to overlook, after half a day with Naruto.

* * *

The rest of his week in Konoha went on in a similar fashion; deep discussions with the clan heads and hokage, failed posturing attempts from the elders, much needed mental breaks with Naruto and his occasional unaware-friend-of-the-day, explanations and arguments in stuffy rooms, shogi with Shikamaru, teeth grinding, gossip avoidance, talking seals with Hinata, moral support from Juugo, sake with the hokage, sleep. He had done his best to show Konoha's officials that setting this meeting was crucial and will not bring ridicule to their village. He had addressed and alleviated their worries, answered as many of their questions as he felt comfortable, and had even shown some of the old lore scrolls he had obtained pertaining to the juubi.

Sometimes, Juugo was by his side for the meetings. Sometimes he wasn't. He took his friend's words to heart and spent time with Shino, meditated by the lake that had once upon a time had been a part of the Uchiha district. Other days, he spent the afternoons among the creatures in the forest of death, or even with the runts of the Inuzuka's dogs.

Doing his best to remove himself from conflict.

By the week's end, it was finally decided. While the elders still attempted opposition, they had been out-voted by the clan heads and hokage; a summit between all five kage as well as Taka himself **will** be set, the final time and place to be disclosed once agreed upon by all parties.

Finally, it was done, just in time for him to return home.

The hokage and her successor saw them off at the gate, all formality. Like Juugo with Shino, Sasuke and Naruto had said their true goodbyes to each-other earlier, in private, as well as any other personal goodbye Sasuke had. They were not many. Once the formality was over and done with, Sasuke and Juugo turned around and walked sedately down the wooded path, towards the land of rice and, eventually, home.

The tall gates of Konoha slammed shut behind them.

* * *

Shimura Danzo walked through the streets of Konoha, secretly surveying the people around him. As so many times before, he had to forcefully suppress the urge to scowl. Such weak people, the lot of them, raised by weak leadership; embarrassingly obvious in their gossip – especially for shinobi – carefree and completely at ease, unaware of their surroundings.

Atrocious, is what it was. Were they strong warriors or second-rate civilians? **He** would have never allowed for such degeneration, such sickness in the village, had he been named hokage as he should have. Even the attack not too long ago didn't seem to jolt any of them out of daydreaming… At this rate, Konoha truly would be annihilated and it would take the enemy no effort at all. No, it was just as he feared: the only way for this village to survive, to **thrive** , was if **he** were the one standing at its head.

And he will. Soon. It was his right, after all, his duty. The opportunity will present itself again and this time, he will not be waylaid. He will not be looked down on by misguided youngsters.

He sneered at the memory of the meeting just a scant few days ago. It still rankled. He himself had been courteous, showing the kind of respect a leader was owed despite said leader's age and the inferiority of the village he lead. What he was answered with was nothing short of condescension and near-open accusations. And Tsunade's humiliating dismissal and disregard of the transgression only made it all worse.

But no matter, all in due time. Tsunade will get hers soon enough, and that "Taka" along with his precious Oto will bow down to Konoha and its sixth hokage. Danzo had patience to spare, and would revel in his victory the day it finally - inevitably - comes.

He blinked, his left hand moving instinctively to the back of his neck. There was nothing there, but he knew he felt a sharp but light pain there. Was he stung? Were even the **bugs** mocking him now? Shrugging off the ridiculous notion with a shake of his head, Danzo continued on his way.

It was then that he started feeling… off. Suddenly, Danzo found his left hand moving as if on its own, twitching and shooting forward or to the side for no apparent reason. He found it harder to walk as the same started happening to his leg… Danzo's scowl deepened, his brows knitting in disdain and outrage. What was this sudden betrayal of his body? This sudden weakness? He will **not** be weak! Such notions were beneath him, and he'd be damned if he allowed that!

The citizens on the street came hesitantly toward the enraged, spasming veteran, wanting to help despite the terrifying display. They were in no way welcomed and nearly got hit – unsure if this was another spasm or an intentional attack as Danzo growled and glared at all who neared him. Then, suddenly, he dropped to the ground, teeth clenching and frothing at the mouth, twitching still. When Shizune arrived some minutes later, rushed over by one of the spectators, he was still spasming, and clearly was having trouble breathing. He had long lost consciousness. Realizing what was happening and the severity of the attack, the medic shunshined him to the hospital almost instantly. It was already too late.

* * *

Tsunade didn't know if to smirk or scoff at the irony. After all this time, after all his scheming and manipulation, after all his posturing and the wars he had fought in, Danzo had died of a brain seizure.

An old-age induced, electrical misfire, **seizure**. He will be rolling in his grave as soon as they put him in it, she was sure.

Still, an autopsy was normal procedure for shinobi – even if they died in childbirth – and what she discovered during the old vulture's... she felt the overwhelming urge to puke, and sake had nothing to do with it.

First was his right eye – or rather **Uchiha Shisui** 's right eye, as per the DNA test – that clearly was no willing gift as Kakashi's had been. And it was bad enough, surely, with everything it had implied as well as its very presence. But then came the arm. Shimura Danzo's heavily bandaged right arm.

She had no idea what to think at first, seeing a huge metal… thing, wrapped all around it. But then she opened it, and instantly wished that she hadn't. Its sick pallor had nothing to do with the lack of life in the body it was attached to, the hideous appendage apparently having been made of cells harvested from the grave of her own grandfather. And this clearly wasn't the only desecrated body, as it was adorned – if such a word could ever be used to describe a thing like that – by ten sharingan eyes, each belonging to a different member of the Uchiha clan.

And the possible implications of **that** …Yes, she completely understood now the hate Sasuke harbored toward him and his wariness of the village as a whole, assuming he knew. And with the kind of classified knowledge he was clearly party to, most likely he did.

She destroyed the eyes. It was the only thing she could do for them in apology. Though she **will** get to the bottom of this, she knew that she could offer no real justice, that the price to Konoha's stability was too high for no tangible gain. But she will do her best to ensure any other involved parties – if such existed – will not go unpunished.

* * *

About 15 minutes out of Konoha, Sasuke joined Juugo and dispelled his clone.

"It went well, then?" the large man asked.

"Yes. I wasn't seen, and I doubt there will be any cause for suspicion. Thank you, for allowing me my whim. I know this is a huge risk to take right now, but..."

Juugo merely shook his head. "Do not apologize. The man had it coming, and I know better than most that some impulses are unavoidable. And besides," he continued, "we know what happened during the attack on Konoha, even if the hokage failed to find evidence. With everything that is coming, there are no guarantees he wouldn't have caused even more harm. To all of us."

"Hn."

* * *

 **A.N.:** Yeah... I don't like Danzo. He got off way too easy in cannon considering everything he was actively suspected of. I actually have another way for him to die, if anyone is interested. *shrug*  
Hopefully the start of this wasn't too ooc. I wanted to show some friendship progress between Sasuke and Naruto.

We don't have much longer now, only 3 more chapters.


	20. Iron Will

**A.N.:** So so so sorry for the late update. Believe it or not, but I actually forgot forgetting... \:

* * *

 **Chapter 18: Iron Will**

The second message from Konoha arrived much faster than the first. In it were disclosed the successful arrangement of the five-kage summit, its date and location – the land of iron, under mitigation of the samurai residing there. Hopefully, the neutral grounds will serve to lower the tension between past enemies - the information revealed here will likely cause enough tempers to rise as it is.

The summit was arranged to appear as a request of Konoha's – they had come upon new information that required the attendance of all five nations. Other than Konoha itself, only the samurai will be aware of Taka's participation – or even existence. This will hopefully allow for a more amicable beginning, as well as lowering the kage's suspicion when the requests were first received. Sasuke himself will only step in later, once the timing was right. Let the conversation begin without him, so its importance can sink in before attentions shift and the entire thing derails.

Sasuke knew that this is where everything came to light. He was under no illusion he would be able to hide his identity at this meeting – though he will stretch it as much as possible – and that if he wanted something as ridiculous-sounding as the tsuki-no-me plan to be taken seriously all cards must be laid on the table. This time, hiding would prove more of a hindrance than honesty, and he must inform the world there still is an Uchiha living in it. Two, actually. _Dammit_.

As per agreement, due to the joint initiative as well as direction, the two parties met on the path and continued together towards the snowy land of iron. It has been agreed by all that each leader will arrive with two bodyguards, and Sasuke naturally brought Suigetsu and Juugo. Tsunade, for her part, brought along Kakashi and Not-Kakashi. Of course, he knew Naruto and Sakura had called him **something** but he wasn't really paying attention back then. Or now. _Whatever. I'll just ask Juugo later_. It isn't like he particularly cared, nor did the name of a guard hold any diplomatic value.

So far, the journey has been uneventful, the silence broken mostly by Suigetsu talking to himself or the hokage halfheartedly trying to weasel out some information ahead of time. Other times, she will ask of the medical team's progress again or Sakura, personally – those questions he answered. Soon, they could feel the drop in temperature, until fog was joined by snow that grew heavier and heavier the closer they got to their destination.

It was only a few hours' journey from the stronghold's gates, when the silence was broken.

"Sorry, but this is as far as you will be going."said the giant man standing just ahead of them, sword casually leaning over one broad shoulder in complete nonchalance, shark-grin fully in place.

"Yo! Kisame-senpai! It's been a while!" Suigetsu called, taking a step forward as the others stopped, his own grin firmly in place.

"Ho? Suigetsu, you're here? Best be off brat, I won't go so easy on you this time."

"Heh? Like hell. Maybe I'll be the one that has to go easy on you."

"Hoshigaki Kisame," Tsunade spoke before an unnecessary fight could break out, even as Kakashi unveiled his sharingan, "what is your business here?"

"Well you see, boss-man heard you wanted to talk behind his back, and not so nicely. So he sent me to kill you."

"The only one to die here, will be you." said Not-Kakashi, drawing his weapons.

"Careful Tenzo," said Kakashi, "this guy has a lot of chakra."

 _So that's his name_ , Sasuke thought. More importantly, "His sword isn't normal either. Try not to touch it. Suigetsu."

"Hmm?"

"Have fun."

Almost instantly, Kisame had an enthusiastic Hozuki rushing him. He was still too easy to block, though. "Didn't learn anything, I see. I'm disappointed."

"So harsh, senpai..."

Tenzo took a defensive position by the hokage and Kakashi was just about to move forward when Sasuke stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. "Wait for an excuse, and help me heat the air.", he said quietly. Kakashi was puzzled, but there was clearly a plan there so he decided to see what will come of it and gave a small nod. Sasuke turned to his other guard, "Juugo." and the name seemed to be enough of an order, because with a simple "Yes" Juugo rushed forward, mutating as he went.

With Suigetsu occupying Samehada, Kisame had a harder time blocking Juugo's frenzy of hammers and axes that should have been hands, and he soon found himself kicked into the air, still clutching his sword. Sasuke moved next, sending several goryuka at him, one of which got absorbed by Samehada as the others... missed?! _No_... thought Kakashi, looking between his ex-student and the Akatsuki member, now reengaged with the two Oto-nin, _this was intentional. What are you playing at, Sasuke?_ But he did have a good idea now of what he was to do.

The battle was longer than a four-on-one had any right to be. Kisame's water spheres were quickly turned against him with lightning making him rethink their usage; though it meant frying allies a little, there was some advantage in having a renowned medic in their midst. Even then, what wounds they managed to cause Kisame were quickly healed by Samehada, even as Suigetsu and Kakashi began to tire. Juugo's chakra appeared to be replenishing itself when needed, drawing on the natural energy around him, but even that couldn't last long. Sasuke had abandoned katon in favor of amaterasu, seemingly more reliable, his identity now clear to Kisame if he did not know already. Unfortunately, Kisame made a game of using the black flames as emergency snacks, and rather than using his control only to move them back to their target, he found himself having to strengthen and recreate them over and over. He too was starting to feel exhausted.

The combination of water and fire techniques soon had them surrounded by thick fog, and Suigetsu copped out, not having the visual prowess of Sasuke and Kakashi or Kisame's sensing (he still didn't know how Juugo navigated). Now, standing by the hokage outside of the affected terrain, he could see the black clouds that turned day into night. "Heh... That's a nice weather."

Tsunade, scowling at the scene and wishing she could just jump in there and end this shit, turned narrowed eyes on him, "What do you mean?"

"You'll see, hokage-sama." he was being cheeky, the little brat, "Just watch and be damn happy you are sitting **here**."

Meanwhile, still in the fog, Sasuke spoke directly to Kisame: "Enough with the games. Time to end this."

"Oh?", came the answer, "You sure about that? I am having quite a bit of fun playing with you kids, myself."

"I have better things to do. Juugo."

The manically laughing creature that used to be Juugo came rushing at Kakashi, all the while saying "It's time! It's time! KILL HIM!" and not being at all reassuring. Kakashi was still debating attacking his supposed ally when the latter grabbed him and jumped out of the fog. "Um... Juugo? Are you alright?" a few long seconds later the laughter slowly died down to chuckles before seizing completely, as Juugo was mentally – and physically – returning to himself. Feeling a presence shunshin to his side, Kakashi turned to see Sasuke. "So... What are we doing?" His only answer was a smirk and a quick series of hand-signs.

As Sasuke lifted his hand, a small amount of chakra – nothing even an academy student would have too much trouble with – shot into the cloud and it shifted, lifting up the fog. Now, Kisame was visible in the valley the melting snow had created bellow, still smiling up at them in condescension. "Am I supposed to be scared of that, mini-Uchiha? My Samehada will have no problem absorbing this attack as well. There is no limit to the amount of chakra it can consume."

"Kirin does not use chakra for attack." Sasuke said, bringing his hand down and with it – the sky.

The flash of lightning was instantaneous, devastating, and in its wake it left a sky clearer than this region had likely seen in a long time, a big crater in the ground, and a smell slightly reminiscent of fried fish. There was a moment of disbelieving silence, then Sasuke spoke. "Suigetsu."

With a joyful hoot, the Hozuki jumped down to the crater and neared Kisame's body, lightly smoking, his beloved Samehada a few meters away looking scorched and much smaller than mere minutes ago, its tongue lulling out. He took out Kubikiribocho and cut off the Akatsuki member's head – _can never be too careful_ – then picked up his sword. "Ne, Sasuke, I'm keeping this!"

"Of course." Suigetsu turned in surprise to see the others standing closer to than they had been, and caught the thrown canteen. "Just don't forget to seal both of them before we meet the mizukage."

Suigetsu gulped, "That woman...", he muttered.

"What was that?" Tenzo asked, no doubt having recognized the hand-signs as those of the jutsu Orochimaru had prevented him from using on him and his team, _Would he really..?_

"That, was the power of true lightning. And as you can tell, it requires certain conditions to work properly." Receiving a nod, he turned back to Tsunade, "We should move on. More than anyone, we cannot afford to be late."

Tsunade agreed, and so they were off.

* * *

"Please remove your kage hats." The five kage all complied with the samurai general's request. They were all seated around the U-shaped table in font of him, their guards safely observing the proceedings from behind a screen nearby. "I am Mifune, your moderator. The five-kage summit is called to order."

"I shall speak first. Hear me out.", began Gaara, the kazekage.

"There is such an age difference between kage these days.", interrupted the old tsuchikage, Onoki, "To have become a kage at your age is quite an accomplishment, kazekage-sama."

Gaara did not allow the tsuchikage's ribbing to get to him, however, calmly rebuffing the attempt and speaking of his own capture by the Akatsuki that resulted in the extraction of the ichibi from his body. "I sought the cooperation of the five-kage many times," he concluded, "but was ignored by all save for the hokage. With them stealing all five nations' tailed-beasts, our reaction has been far too slow." Tsunade gave a slight nod in his direction, supporting the statement.

The tsuchikage scoffed, speaking of the need for secrecy and the maintenance of pride and appearances for the prestige of the shinobi nations, which Gaara, in turn, dubbed old-fashioned notions. The mizukage, Mei, while admitting she had knowingly delayed action in the matter, stressed the amount of time needed for a jinchuriki to fully mature and the difficulty of controlling the bijuu as a way of stating there is still time left. After all, what child comes of age within three years? That statement, in turn, was supported by the tsuchikage.

At last, Tsunade spoke: "That may have been true – if Akatsuki were in the habit of creating their own jinchuriki. In reality, we have far less time than the two of you seem to believe."

"Do we? Or does Konoha seek the help of the other nations to ensure it becomes the only village to maintain its jinchuriki? Let me be clear: the only reason I agreed to this meet-up is because I do not trust any of you!" shouted the raikage, A, the wood splitting where his fist hit the table. He spoke of Akatsuki's make-up as well as previous hiring of them by the other nations, Onoki not helping matters by stating its benefits.

Behind his own curtain, Sasuke clenched his fist. This was going terribly already, and there wasn't much he could do just yet. Tsunade as well appeared to be in a difficult position. Luckily, Mifune managed to regain control, though it was Gaara who stirred the conversation back to the right direction. "Hokage-sama, what you said before... if the Akatsuki are not creating jinchuriki of their own what are they doing? How do they intend to control them?" _Even should their main goal be weakening the five nations by removing their bijuu, there is no way for such a group to hold this much power and not intend to use it!_ he thought.

"As you already know," Tsunade began, "the Akatsuki have been sealing the bijuu they extract in a statue called the Gedo-Mazo. What you are not aware of, however, is that this ancient relic had been the origin point of the tailed beasts – the juubi, split into nine parts by the rikudo sennin. This is what the Akatsuki are after; not the power of all nine tailed beasts but that of the ten tails. Their plan is to re-merge them in order to then attack us all."

"Are we supposed to buy that?" the raikage exclaimed, "The rikudo sennin himself is no more than myth, now you would invent another? I say this again: Konoha only wants us to protect its own jinchuriki!"

"Let me remind you," Tsunade was now beginning to lose her own patience, "that an attempt for Uzumaki Naruto was already made – twice in the past six years, at that. If anything, so far Konoha had been the only village to **succeed** in protecting its jinchuriki! I have seen the same scrolls Akatsuki had been following and they were all authenticated as being written before the dawn of the shinobi. Of the statue being capable of holding the bijuu there is no question. It will be the doom of us all should the juubi return to existence!"

"And say we were to believe you, that such power was even possible. How would a bunch of criminals manage to handle it? Surely, it will kill them first." the tsuchikage mocked.

But it was not Tsunade, but Gaara who replied. "In that scenario, it will likely go on a rampage and attack us anyway." Tsunade showed both her agreement and gratitude with a firm nod, but wasn't as confident as she appeared. _What are you still waiting for, brat?_ "The question remains, however." Gaara continued, "Can they truly manage it?"

"They can, or at least their leader can." Finally, Sasuke stepped out though he was still hooded. From here on, it seemed there will be need for information the hokage did not hold. He nodded at her, saying "Thank you, hokage-sama, for arranging this meeting in our behalf." He wasn't masking his voice, and Gaara's brow furrowed. There was something that felt familiar, but he could not figure out exactly what.

Mifune took introductions upon himself before things could deteriorate again. "Esteemed kage, may I introduce Taka, the leader of Oto village and the one among us with the most concrete information regarding Akatsuki."

"What?" A, again.

"Raikage-sama," Sasuke addressed him, "I know of your brother's fate. A spy of mine had witnessed his sealing but a few months ago, but there was nothing she could have one at the time. Would you not wish to know where to direct your anger? Kazekage-sama knows the pain he must have felt, but vengeance aside... the danger is real for all of us, and war will soon come to all our doorsteps – it is not solely Akatsuki that we are up against as the smaller nations still resent the greater ones."

"How dare you..."

"How can they?" Gaara repeated his question.

Ignoring the raikage's hissed outburst for now, Sasuke answered him. "The rinnegan. The eyes that until a year ago were considered mere myth," he pointedly stressed the last word, "were already shown to be at the hands of Akatsuki. However, they did not truly belong to Pain, just as he wasn't the true leader. Just like him, that leader can use them. The eyes of the one to trap the juubi – **will** control the juubi."

"To what end? If not Pain, then who is Akatsuki's leader?" now the tsuchikage seemed to take things seriously, brow furrowing with consideration and suspicion.

"He calls himself Uchiha Madara." the tension was clear on everyone's faces – Tsunade included. From here on out, these will be news to her, as well. Before that tension could escalate, Sasuke continued: "He is not nearly as old, however. It is just a name." the room itself sighed with relief.

"Then who **is** he?" Tsunade asked, this being a question often dodged in the past.

Sasuke shrugged, "A different Uchiha. Either officially KIA or MIA or even a descendant of Madara's, I don't know or care. Most likely, he was the source of the rumors an Uchiha caused the kyuubi attack – not that the clan had any way of knowing."

At that, Mei spoke, her face full of sadness: "Since we have come this far, I will speak honestly. There were suspicions that someone in the Akatsuki was manipulating Yagura, our fourth mizukage. The sharingan... an Uchiha may very well have been capable of that." Sasuke nodded.

"Hokage-sama, I promised you that I will reveal all I know of Akatsuki's plans in the course of this meeting and here it is: they call this plan tsuki-no-me. Not even all of their own members were aware of it, though those who remain are. Their allies do not, or they never would have joined, but once this plan come to fruition it will not matter. They have no intention of ruling over the nations nor subjugating them. Essentially, the tsuki-no-me plan equals enslaving the population of the world at large to the point of annihilation. They will use the power granted by the juubi to affect the moon and trap everyone in eternal genjutsu, unable to escape and utterly useless."

Onoki actually had the audacity to **laugh**. "Put genjutsu on **the moon**?! Kid, I don't know how you duped the hokage but clearly there is something wrong with you if you believe **that**!"

The raikage appeared to agree with him. "Something like that is not only ridiculous but impossible! Do you take us all for fools?"

"I promise you, this is indeed possible. The rinnegan is a rare advancement of the sharingan, and with it – in addition to the juubi's power - an Uchiha is most definitely capable of an illusion of that scale." As he spoke he was slowly pulling back the hood, and now he stood before them with revealed sharingan, "And my 'dear' cousin is just insane enough to think it a good idea, and actually do it."

It was silent for a few minutes. Then, Gaara whispered "Uchiha Sasuke.", and tuned a questioning look at Tsunade.

"Yeah," she answered, "he knows."

Eyes turning back to black now that his point was made, Sasuke continued: "The Akatsuki – their remaining members, anyway – have a very fucked up idea of peace. They believe that if each person were to live in their own dreamworld – literally – this will mean a true end to war. Too bad it essentially ends everything else as well.

"Soon they will attack Konoha with an army in an attempt to get the kyuubi. If they do, it is already over. Uzumaki Naruto cannot be allowed to fall to their hands. Make no mistake – Oto will stand against them, with or without the rest of you. I just figured you might prefer **not** lying down and dying."

"That is a rather lofty statement." said Mei, "You are a small village. If they truly have an army, as you claim, you set your people on the path of extinction."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "Your point? Most of my people, mizukage-sama, have been prisoners. All of them have been slaves if only to their own minds. To be captives to the point of no thought... even Orochimaru wasn't that much of an asshole, though he did try. The shinobi and civilians of Oto are of one mind – better be dead. Win or lose, with those stakes we would rather fight. And if there is no conceivable way of winning, and the enemy has assured victory to themselves... let death come. It will be most welcome."

"You have changed." Gaara stated.

"I could say the same of you."

"In light of this threat," Mifune began, "an allied force of shinobi may be opportune. The samurai will stand behind such a cause, as well. What say you?" There was much more debate still, but in the end an alliance was created, the supreme leader being A, the fourth raikage. Finally, things were moving in the right direction.


	21. War

**A.N.:** Hope this doesn't feel too rushed, I wanted to only show the important bits.

* * *

 **Chapter 19: War**

Karin stood on the balcony, eyes trained in the direction of the gates, senses on full alert and mind miles away. A few days past the conference in the land of iron, Sakura left to return to Konoha; war was on the horizon, and as one of only two true battle-medics she would have to be there. As second to Tsunade at the Konoha hospital, she will also be needed to organize the others. It was quite alright, really, the other two medics remained as did the trainees, and lessons as well as every-day treatments will go on as usual. As for Karin's own medical state, her treatments reached a point where it was more "exercise" than anything – chakra needed to be circulated through the new pathways in order to widen and flex them. With her control and stamina, Karin was more than able to do so herself. No, the problem with Sakura leaving was more that... well... they became very close friends.

So now, Sakura was another loved one to worry about, risking her life somewhere out of Karin's sensing range. Her, and the rest of Hebi.

Thinking of their little team of strays now felt almost ridiculous. They were so different now, all of them. Something had been gradually shifting in each one of them since they first came back here, since they started building a true village out of the rabble of the lie that stood here before.

She never imagined they would actually succeed, but that is beside the point.

Juugo, for instance, was more confident than he had been. Though he was still far from secure in his ability to control himself, he did trust himself a little more, to the point of allowing himself the company of others. Even if he feared being too far away from him, he was no longer glued to Sasuke like a toddler to their safety blanket. He knew now, that he will not lose control so easily and when he did, those around him will help. More importantly – they will understand. They will never let him harm someone in a fit of rage ever again.

He was even something of a spiritual leader now, and it was so much fun to tease him about it. They all did at some point – even Sasuke.

She smiled. There was, perhaps, the most notable change in any of them. She remembered a time, not too long ago, she had wished with all her heart to see his smile – like that time he still couldn't remember during the chunin exams. Well, she saw his smile several times now, and a much more genuine one than back then. He was allowing himself to live his own life now, not dedicate it to the dead, no longer burying his feelings or hiding them outside of battle. Others would say that he was gentler, maybe, kinder – but she knew he always was. He might have locked these parts of himself away, but one would be surprised just how much your chakra could say about you to those truly skilled in reading it.

So for all that it was easier to notice in him, the change itself was quite superficial, really. He was still a turbulent spirit, still unapologetic, rational and capable of cruelty. He was downright vicious when he felt like it – but he felt like it a lot less, and Karin was overjoyed that he was finally breathing. He being with her was a bonus.

Even Suigetsu had changed, for all that he would try to deny it. He was far less obsessed with his precious swords, for one, or he may have opted to stay home and keep trying to make Samehada like him (smart sword that it was, it didn't). She didn't care what he said – he had gone domestic. Between the A and S ranked missions that were the only ones their village got (likely due to the lower fee in comparison to other shinobi in the area), organizing their fighters, bothering Sasuke and trying (and failing) to hit on random women, he was spending a surprising amount of his meager spare time at the Children's' House.

She spied him once in a particularly hot day turning into a swimming pool for them. She won't ever tell him, but it was kind of cute… you know… for a kappa…

As for Karin herself… she felt calmer here, and was definitely more confident. Though she had always been proud and knew her own worth, she was also enough of a realist to see her situation for what it truly was. Her childhood made her feel nothing but helpless, and the authority she held as Orochimaru's jailer was a joke. She knew she held no real power there.

So she toughened up. She took the pride she knew she deserved to feel and acted like the rest of the world was beneath her. She knew she was a pawn – so she made sure to never be treated as such. Karin knew she was smart, that she was strong, talented in ways no one else was, but the world was just too blind to see it, so she made do and played her part.

And then he saw it. The first honest compliment she could remember since her mother's death… and it was to her intellect. If she wasn't in love with him already – that would have done it.

She knew now she had no need to try too hard, no need to be anything but herself. The respect she held was earned, her efforts appreciated and her life and actions ones she could truly be proud of. Her choices weren't illusory. Life still was far from easy, and her pain surely hadn't stopped – but she had a home, for the first time ever, and Karin will destroy, die and kill before she ever let anyone take it away from her.

Which... you know... made staying behind that much harder. Her family, her friend and many others she considered 'hers' in some way or another were fighting a war against madmen and desperate pawns, and it was something of a toss-up which was worse. Karin was no front liner – she knew that. She was a defender. And with most of Oto's active force away at war her defense was probably more important now than ever.

She knew she was still supporting them, allowing them a clarity of mind and lessening of stress that could mean life or death in the heat of a battle, protecting their homes and their hearts and everything they built that held meaning. So she didn't resent her part nor believe it to be any less important than it is. She just wished she was with them so she could make sure they are alright.

Worrying sucks.

* * *

Strangely enough, a war against a criminal organization looked and felt just like a war between nations. The shinobi alliance decided to remake everyone's hitayate – sure, whatever – in an attempt of creating feelings of support and unification between once-enemies. It was a nice gesture, Sasuke supposed, too bad they all retained their native uniforms thus making the point moot. In the same vain, all of the great nations' shinobi were divided between the main units based on skill sets rather than nationality.

Oto, however, stayed together as something of a sub-unit. The decision was mutual. No outsider really knew what to make of the Oto-nin nor how best to utilize their capabilities – many of which consisted of near-extinct kekei-genkai. It didn't help that many feared the rage induced by the cursed seal that marked most of the Oto soldiers in a high-adrenaline and high-aggression setting.

For his part, Sasuke agreed it will likely be best they all remain by him. However, it wasn't solely to insure things did not go out of control. First of all, they knew how best to work with each-other, knew what situations they can trust person X to handle, who would have their backs and which crazy-plan was actually bound to work. But, most importantly, he still had a hard time trusting his people to strangers. Call him paranoid, but he just didn't want them out of his sight.

They knew that, if the constant teasing the first few days was any indication. _Oh,well._

So, Oto's small force of just over a hundred shinobi served as something of a sub-division for Kakashi's unit. Sasuke didn't know why Kakashi's exactly. Maybe the strategists just figured they had the best chance at something of a teamwork, since they knew each other. Or, maybe, no one else wanted to have to deal with him. But he saw no reason to dispute it, either. It **was** probably for the best.

By now, the war had been going on for a long enough time that none of this mattered. A few weeks after the conference, Tsuki came to him with new information: "Madara" had implanted the rinnegan, and was now recuperating and adjusting to his new eyes and powers. The allied forces seized the opportunity to attack.

Akatsuki clearly had spies of their own, however, and the force met a ready defense in the form of its allies, led by Zetsu. "Madara", of course, was absent, but the lack of any sign of Konan or Ame was starting to become incredibly worrying at this point. Not to mention, about two weeks ago, word of border attacks reached their ears; the enemy was attacking the villages while their strongest fighters were otherwise occupied. The multiple fronts forced the army to split in order to cover all bases.

Sasuke knew that Oto was, for the moment, not under threat, but he worried for Naruto. As far as he knew, the jinchuriki was on a diplomatic mission to the capitol when war was officially announced, and was instructed to care for the management of the village while the hokage was away. Hopefully it will keep him occupied for a while, though he was bound to show up eventually if this kept going on. _Please don't do anything stupid, dobe._ He knew it was pointless to hope.

* * *

Under any other circumstances, Naruto would have been thrilled at the chance to "really hokage", but now it felt almost like a punishment. When he returned from his mission, it was already far too late to follow the force, and even he had to agree that with most of the council at the command post, someone was needed to run the village. Contrary to popular belief, life did not actually stop in the face of war. At least, not if you were not on a battlefield. But all of his friends were away, risking their lives far from him, and he couldn't help them, couldn't protect them. Not while he was still here.

And when the border skirmishes started he tried to be a good boy. Really, he did. He only sent shadow clones to support the forces, rather than himself. But enough was enough. He could tell things were not going too well out there. And wasn't it his fault, anyway? Weren't they only here for him? He had been wondering that from the first day he felt Konan's chakra signature, leading the Ame shinobi in the attack on Konoha.

The only reason for an Akatsuki member to not be in the main fight, is if they sought to bypass it – right? And she seemed to make a point of mainly fighting his clones.

He could not keep back any longer.

The next time Konan attacked a Naruto, sending a storm of paper shuriken right at him, he was the real deal. And trying to guilt her, again. "Why, Konan? I know you and Nagato never wanted anything but peace – the real kind! He gave his life for it, so why? Why are you still with them? Why are you attacking?" Unlike the previous times, unfortunately, one good hit **won't** shut him up. She will actually need to reply.

Fine.

"Don't you dare speak of him!" she cried, and it was the first time in a long time she allowed for her feelings to show in battle, "My whole world is gone because of you, Uzumaki Naruto!" she was attacking him through rage and tears both, not hindered by either, they instead appeared to empower her further. "Nagato is gone! Left me the same as Yahiko. And for what? A world that still resents him?

"He died to undo his own deeds! Ending the attack wasn't enough for you, was it? You needed to rob him of his life as well! Some hero of Konoha you are! You didn't save anybody – **he** did!"

"Konan, I know that! I am so grateful to him for that. But what you are doing... this isn't what he would have wanted!"

"No, this is what **I** want! Dying to negate what you had only just done... is dying for nothing! For things to reset and go back to the way they always were. The greater shinobi nations **still** don't care the slightest about us, nor will they ever!"

"But this is not the way! Konan, do you really want to become nothing? For all those you care about to become nothing?"

"My family is gone! **Again!** I want them near me. I want them happy. I want them **alive**! And if it is nothing more than an illusion... well, I wouldn't know that, will I? So what is the difference? And I will have my revenge on **you** in the real world!"

He kept trying to reach her, to convince her that this was not the way, that the best she could do to honor Nagato and Yahiko and their memory is to live on for them, fight for what they truly believed in... But even he could see it was of no use. In the end, Konan laid dead before him, and a few days later the attacking force was fended off. Naruto tasked a few capable special-jonin to aid the remaining council, made sure the borders were secure in case of another attack, and made his way to the front line.

If Tobi, or Madara, or whatever the fuck his name was wanted a piece of him, he can sure well try. But he will not be touching Naruto's home!

* * *

When Naruto finally reached the front (he decided to make a few helpful stops along the way), he found himself surrounded by chaos. It was the same as on the villages' borders but on a much larger scale, making it hard to distinguish friend from foe if he didn't personally know them. He was so grateful for the unified hitayate, and made sure to check each one before attacking. He hated all the bodies littering the ground, the wounded lying among the dead, some accidentally trampled to death by their own allies. War, it seemed, managed to be even worse than he ever imagined.

He saw the medical unit running around with trackers, trying to pull the wounded to safety before treating them, occasionally hearing Sakura barking out orders. He opted against paying her a visit, though; she sounded busy, and he was here to help with the fight, anyway. Also, she will probably hit him for being here. _I would take enemy jutsu over Sakura-chan's 'tough love' any day._

So he fought.

* * *

Zetsu was a real pain in the ass. Not only capable of splitting himself and burrowing, but also resealing his wounds, agilely avoiding whole sealing teams and being slippery all around, attacking in devastating combinations of mokuton and poisons... Fights against him seemed to have no end, or at least, no favorable end. Sasuke was getting seriously pissed off. _Could it_ _ **get**_ _any worse?_

"Oi! Teme! Finally I found you!" _Never mind._ He thought wryly, unable to suppress a small grin.

"What are you doing here, Naruto? Aren't you supposed to be hiding from these guys in a safe or whatever, not running strait to them?"

"Shut up! I was doing important work! It's not my fault if you guys can't do anything without me!"

"Hn."

"Uzumaki Naruto. The kyuubi jinchuriki." "Thank you, for making our job so much easier."

Naruto shuddered, "Brr. I hate how that guy talks. Gives me the chills."

Sasuke may have responded, he did agree with him on that, but right then Zetsu lunged himself at Naruto, trying to catch him unaware. Susanoo's foot moved to try and step on him. Again. Zetsu burrowed under and quite literally sprouted elsewhere.

Again.

If there isn't visible steam coming off of him, Sasuke will be surprised. "Why are you so yellow, by the way? You're like a frigging glow-stick."

"Look who's talking! And this is Kurama's sage-mode." Sasuke just blinked at him. "Kurama! You know, the kyuubi? We're friends now." Naruto was grinning, and Sasuke was surprised at his lack of surprise. _Naruto befriending chakra monsters, too, now? Sure, why not._

Zetsu lunged again and they readied themselves for attack. The fight was still long and difficult, but for two shinobi who hadn't seen each other for years, their teamwork was astounding. Not a single word needed to pass between them, going off of subtle cues and the slightest movement of the other's body to convey whole strategies. Eventually, Naruto could sense Tobi's large chakra signature approaching the battlefield. This needed to be finished – **now**. A spinning rasengan sent a column of wind that lifted Zetsu up away from the ground and enlarged the black flames of susanoo's arrow. Zetsu will not be recovering anymore.

And that is when "Madara" showed up.

* * *

Why was it that fighting a single person felt more taxing than fighting an entire army? At least he had only one rinnegan – Sasuke assumed the nerves of his left eye had atrophied since he lost it in whatever – preventing him from using some of the abilities pain had showed. He still felt impossible, however, powerful beyond measure, and his focus sticking to Naruto turned the whole thing from a war to a mass-scale protection mission.

At least he was still human and needed rest from the massive amounts of chakra he'd been using. Otherwise, they never would have made it.

* * *

Sasuke was resting, trying to meditate by the fire to gather himself before the fighting starts anew come morning, when the high-pitched screech had him looking to the sky. Almost immediately he raised a hand, recognizing the hawk as Tsukai, the summon in charge of delivering periodic updates between him and Karin. It eased his worry for the village, while his short replies assured Karin he was, in fact, still alive, and at least well enough to write.

He brushed a finger over the bird's short forehead in thanks before removing the tiny scroll from its carrier. It was the same impersonal, to-the-point update as always, not unlike the one he will send back, but after it, on the very bottom, two final lines broke the pattern:

 _When you come back, I have a surprise for you. Not a bad one – promise. :)_

What could 'a surprise' possibly mean? And why will Karin write that – with a smiley face, at that? They kept the wording simple and practical for a reason, not giving any real information and taking care not to reveal any affection in case the letters were to fall to the wrong hands. Even if she said the surprise itself was good, the very mention of it at all worried him.

In the end, he decided not to comment on it in his reply, only saying everything is going well, updating her on the medical state of their warriors and himself, and letting her know that, though they were making notable progress now, it will still be some time before the war is over. The worry and curiosity, though, will keep plaguing his mind for weeks to come.

* * *

The mask flew away, and Kakashi stopped his attack, staring at the face he could never forget. "No..." Tobi - _He's name is Tobi. He's Tobi. He's not..._ \- smirked as he threw him off with a kick.

"Have you finally lost your edge, Kakashi?"

"He was the kindest soul that... You cannot be..."

"Obito? Oh, but I am him."

"No. You can't be. Obito was my hero. The person who taught me about the truly important things. The one that refused to let a comrade die, even if said comrade was a little shit. He would never choose a world of lies over reality. He would have never hurt..."

"This is a world of lies we live in. Kakashi won't fail to protect Rin. Rin will never die. Minato-sensei is indestructible. But you did fail, and Rin died and so did Minato-sensei. But that can't be – therefor, it is a lie. The true lie is **this** world. And it is time to awake from it."

"You can't actually believe that. Obito, what happened to you?"

"I woke up, and saw the lies." Kakashi didn't see the attack coming, nor even tried to block the next. Or the next. Or the next.

The one after that was blocked by someone else. Someone that shouted at him "Get a grip on yourself, Kakashi! Whoever he was to you, whatever you felt for him, shove it out of your head!", and Kakashi felt inexplicably furious.

"Some of us can't just turn our emotions on and off on a whim. Some of us **don't** like attacking our friends!" Kakashi couldn't remember ever being so angry at Sasuke, not even after finding Naruto that day. Somewhere inside, he knew he was being unfair, he knew Sasuke was right. But that part was too far away to matter right then.

It was alright, Sasuke understood betrayal well enough. But this wasn't the time. "Well, you better learn fast, then. Because that man clearly can, and if you want to die that's fine – but do that on your own time!"

Obito laughed, "I like that philosophy. Sure, hurry up and die, Kakashi. As you are now, you are nothing but trash anyway."

His next attack was blocked by a flash of yellow, rather than black. _Minato-sensei?.. No..._ "Don't you dare lay a hand on Kakashi-sensei! The way I see it, the only trash here is you! Someone who would abandon a comrade!" _Minato-sensei... Kushina-sama... You can be proud._ Obito's eyes widened for a moment before dodging the multiple fists flying at his face. Sasuke, for his part, suppressed a flinch of his own at the (hopefully) accidental jab.

Naruto caught his eye and started shifting, and he allowed for a smirk, releasing susanoo again and feeling the seals healing the damage to his eyes even as it happened. He didn't have much left in him, but he did have enough for one fox-shaped suit of armor, still.

It was time to end this. _Sorry, Kakashi. You'll just have to self-destruct later._

* * *

With Obito's death, it took only a few more days for the small villages to surrender. The war was over. The rinnegan destroyed.

The world was safe.

As soon as the wounded were stabilized, they could all go home. Finally.


	22. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

As the group got back to Oto, Karin was already at the gate to greet them, along with medics and gurneys. As soon as Sasuke saw her, he dropped to his knees. Sakura, beyond surprised, paused in her order-barking for a moment, allowing another iryo-nin to take charge of transporting the injured.

The look on his face was unlike any she had seen before. He looked stricken, though not in a bad way, almost awed and clearly overcome with **something**. He bowed his head forward, and Sakura's gaze followed the movement until he rested his forehead on Karin's stomach.

Karin's clearly **pregnant** stomach, about seven months along, probably.

A few moments later, Sasuke lifted his head to stare at Karin's affectionate face, and actually stuttered nearly as bad as Hinata: "Is that… Did…" Karin just nodded, a smile growing on her face, showing no intention of stopping **ever** , and tears gathering in her eyes. Sasuke, for his part, stayed frozen a while longer, before bowing his head again to press a long, heartfelt kiss right over the place currently sheltering his child. It suddenly hit her, when Sasuke rose to kiss Karin's lips like there was no one else in the entire world, let alone the vicinity.

His child. Which meant that the other child, the one they lost almost two years ago now, _at frigging eighteen!_ , was his as well. God, her idiots really couldn't get a break, could they? But then, looking at the stupidly smiling couple still stuck in their own world, she thought _well, maybe they can_. She cleared her throat to break their little bubble, speaking with as much authority as Tsunade ever did: "Karin, you have been under observation, right?"

The redhead actually had the audacity to roll her eyes at her! "Obviously. Don't worry, doctor, I was practically living in the hospital for months." Turning a gentle smile to her newly-worried lover, she added "They say everything is fine, though."

He nodded, though clearly he won't stop worrying until after the child was born. Or maybe **never** , because, you know – **new dad**. Oh, god, **Sasuke** was about to be a **father**! For some reason it made no sense at all and yet all the sense in the world at the same time. Clearly, the idea will take some getting used to. "Either way, I will be taking over as your physician from now on, no arguments. Understand?"

Karin heaved a sigh, but she was still smiling, "So I figured…"

"Thank you, Sakura." And even though she heard these words from him before, never had they sounded so sincere or grateful, nor did they make her heart flutter as it did now at the relief in his eyes.

She found that she couldn't stop beaming, herself.

* * *

 **A.N.:** And it's over. Hope you liked it. Originally this was intended to be part of the last chapter but didn't fit. The original epilogue was basically Sasuke being a father and Naruto being a hokage and a comment about a new-born with the Uchiha temper and Uzumaki lungs, but... *shrug*

Anyway, let me know what you all thought, okay? ^_^


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